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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24357013">Strangers</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoodIdeaAtTheTime/pseuds/GoodIdeaAtTheTime'>GoodIdeaAtTheTime</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Gundam Wing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Claire is back on her tropey bullshit again, Duo is a stressed-out jerk who needs a holiday, Frozen Teardrop can do one, Long Lost Twins, M/M, OC - Oliver McGann, Pining, Post-EW, sex in later chapters because this is me who are we kidding, this was meant to be hijinks but then I got reminded these boys have Issues</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 09:28:50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>75,285</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24357013</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoodIdeaAtTheTime/pseuds/GoodIdeaAtTheTime</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>If you said the word "brother" to Duo Maxwell, he'd think of the other pilots.</p><p>If you said, "no, your long-lost brother" to Duo Maxwell, he'd think of Solo and be very confused.</p><p>If you said, "no, your twin brother you were separated from at birth, and he's now working with the Preventers as a lawyer" to Duo Maxwell, he would go and punch his doppelganger.</p><p>Duo Maxwell isn't good at dealing with things, but unfortunately this particular thing isn't going to go away that easily.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Chang Wufei/Duo Maxwell</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>326</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>160</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. One</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“It’s all set up in here for you, Agent Chang. We’ll send the solicitor up when they arrive.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei made a noise that could be seen as acknowledgement, thanks, or annoyance that the solicitor hadn’t arrived already, but the administrator showing him the room was familiar with him, so just nodded and left him to it without another word.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At least there was a window, Wufei thought irritably. The last time he had been forced to go through case files with a solicitor they had ended up in a stuffy basement room, with no sense of the passage of time. He had finished the session with a thumping headache and a mood so thoroughly unpleasant – particularly towards anyone who dared to speak to him – that he had been passed over for this task for a number of occasions since then.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He had hoped the trend would continue, but he supposed this </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> his case. And they’d taken feedback on board at any rate.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Moving over to the table, he idly tipped the lid off one of the boxes and started flicking through the folders in there. Witness statements, mostly from victims, a handful from lower-level associates going for plea bargains. The usual.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t look up when the door opened behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  
  
  <span>“Agent Chang, I assume?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The voice was familiar, although the accent wasn’t usual - lilting, Irish perhaps? Duo wasn’t supposed to be in today, so he must have swung by and decided to pester Wufei enroute to wherever he was heading, and show off the new accent he had mastered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not now, Duo. The solicitor’s due imminently, I don’t have time to do a skit with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a long pause.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“…I’m sorry? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Are</span>
  </em>
  <span> you Agent Chang?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Frowning at the actual, honest confusion in the voice, Wufei turned, and then immediately had a minor heart attack - although he mostly managed to keep it off his face, his hands clenched convulsively in shock. He fell back a step to brace himself against the table, whilst his brain shut down and rebooted to see if it could do better at processing what was in front of him on a second run.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was Duo, but… it </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Same face, same height and build. Same violet eyes, same chestnut hair, same wrinkle between the eyebrows when he frowned, puzzled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But the chestnut hair was cut short, styled with a bit of gel, so no bangs fell in his face. The identical body was clad in a smart grey suit, pressed and polished, wearing a bright, cheerful tie, knotted deftly in a half Windsor, and a crisp white shirt. In one hand there was a black leather briefcase, to match the black leather dress shoes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Wufei said, his voice strained, and he cleared his throat before continuing. “Sorry, yes, I’m Agent Chang. And you are?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver McGann,” the doppelganger said, stepping forward warily and holding out his hand to shake. “I’m working with you on the Hernandez case?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei took the hand automatically, shook it, noted that whilst the grip was the same, firm grasp - same size, same shape, fit into Wufei's hand the same way - the palms weren’t calloused or rough like Duo’s, there wasn’t that mess of small scars across the knuckles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That helped, actually. That </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn’t </span>
  </em>
  <span>Duo’s hand. This </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right, yes.” Wufei turned and gestured to the table. “Here it is.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Grand,” Oliver said, accent thickening over Duo’s deep rumble. “Let’s get crackin’ then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He dropped his briefcase onto the table across from Wufei with a bang, and shot Wufei a crooked, cheeky grin. The same crooked, cheeky grin that Wufei knew so well, that set his stomach into freefall on a good day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It did it today too, but not for the same reasons.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The whole day had been very draining.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not just because they had been pouring over the statements of a number of victims, and perpetrators, of a large-scale international people-trafficking ring - Wufei was sad to say that he had become rather inured to that over the years. Another day, another awful crime committed by humans against other humans. Matching the statements to each other to check for holes in the prosecution, and to ensure the evidence matched, was time consuming and tedious. Once upon a time it had been emotionally exhausting, but by now he had learned to block it out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>No, it had been the Uncanny Valley experience of Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Every time he thought he had got used to it, Oliver did something that was either very typically Duo, or so flagrantly </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> Duo, that Wufei was unbalanced all over again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He chewed his pen like Duo, teeth worrying the end of the ratty ballpoint as he frowned down at his reading; but his handwriting was immaculate cursive, quick, smooth and completely legible as opposed to Duo’s almost hieroglyphic scrawl. He was right-handed, where Duo was left-handed. He took his jacket off and rolled his sleeves up about halfway through the day, but left his collar buttoned and his tie in place.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And there was the wedding ring. Wufei had a lot of thoughts and feelings about seeing not-Duo wearing a wedding ring, and they were all clamouring loudly, making it impossible to identify any one individually.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was just as chatty as Duo as well, which didn’t help. The accent striking discordant every time he spoke, asking about Wufei’s background, how long he had worked with the Preventers, how he liked Brussels.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Wufei said tightly. He flipped the folder he was working on around and passed it to Oliver. “This statement matches up with the one from Paulson.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Magic,” Oliver said happily, taking the file off him and noting down the references.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei watched him with frown.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long have you been in Brussels?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got here last night,” Oliver told him, flashing him a quick grin - same lips, same teeth - before looking back at the documents. “So I haven’t had time to really enjoy the local ambience yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jesus, Wufei thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ambience</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“From… Ireland?” Wufei guessed, trying to tease more information out of him. He should have realised that he didn’t need to be subtle - Oliver was just as willing to share as Duo was, without the caution that came from years of high-risk work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nah, I’m based in the Hague right now. I grew up in Ireland - just outside Dublin.  But, hah, I was actually born on L2 - not that you’d know it to listen to me. I was just a bab when my parents moved.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hearing that, Wufei’s stomach plummeted. He knew about Duo’s origins - </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> his parents have had twins and abandoned him? It seemed unlikely that anyone would do that knowingly, but then he was sat going through testimonies about a large scale slavery operation, so perhaps his expectations for humanity were set rather low.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, no,” Oliver said with a chuckle, in answer to Wufei’s cautious enquiry as to whether his parents were from L2. “They’re from Ireland too - Dad was in the Alliance, and got stationed on L2 for a few years. They adopted me while they were up there - then Dad’s commission ended and they came back to Earth.” He shrugged, slightly awkward. “In the end, it worked out, what with that coup - we were pretty out of the way of it all where we were. Luck o’ the Irish I guess, kept us out of the war.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei grunted acknowledgement, frowning down at the papers in front of him. He could see Oliver on the peripherals of his vision, trying to catch his eye again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about you?” the Irishman prompted. “You been in Brussels long?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About fifteen years,” Wufei said, offering no further information.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, did your parents move here for work then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver chewed his lip, clearly not wanting to give up on the potential for an actual conversation, tapping his biro against the paper thoughtfully, impatiently, and just like Duo. Wufei felt his head throbbing from this warped reflection he was seeing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long you been with the Preventers, then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is your wife in Brussels with you?” Wufei said, in lieu of answer, wafting a piece of paper vaguely at the wedding ring as he moved it from one pile to the other. Oliver looked down at his ring with a soft smile, rubbing his thumb over the band absently.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Jesus</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s back with the kids,” Oliver said, sounding slightly wistful. “They’re still at school, but this was too big a chance to pass up, so…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Kids?” Wufei choked out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Two,” Oliver told him fondly. “One of each.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pressing his lips together in a firm line, Wufei took a deep breath and tried to make the words he was reading come back into focus. He needed to get through this, and…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>... and what?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, d’you want to grab dinner after this?” came a hopeful question. “Maybe we could have a drink and you could fill me in on all the tips for surviving here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t tonight,” Wufei said, quickly. “I have… plans.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh.” And dammit if Oliver didn’t manage to sound just as disappointed as Duo did when he tried to brush things off as no big deal. “Tomorrow then, maybe?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, tomorrow,” Wufei agreed absently.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But, first things first…</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>It had been over an hour since Wufei had shown up at his apartment unexpectedly, with no explanation and a frown on his face. Duo hadn’t questioned it, stepped aside and waved him in. Had handed him a beer, which he was still holding now, having not actually drunk any of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had been over an hour, and Wufei hadn’t said a single word.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” Duo said finally, sitting on the coffee table directly in front of his friend and prising the now warm beer out of his grip and setting it aside. “What’s going on? You keep lookin’ like you’re about to say somethin’ and then changin’ your mind. Spit it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei sighed and leaned forwards, resting his elbows on his knees and rubbing his palms together, a nervous tic that didn’t come out often. It brought their faces close, so Duo could clearly read the tightness of his jaw, the tension at the corners of his eyes. A slight chill went through him - he’d known it was something big, but this seemed to be something big and bad.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have something to tell you,” Wufei began, slowly, “but I’m not sure </span>
  <em>
    <span>how</span>
  </em>
  <span> to tell you. It’s going to come as a shock, and you deserve to hear it from me. But I don’t know how to soften it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was… ominous. Swallowing, Duo took a moment to consider, then a deep breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just tell me as plain as possible. No way for confusion there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei nodded, gravely. Took his own deep breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I just met your brother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The first thing Duo’s mind flashed to was Solo - Solo, dying on the streets of L2, plague-ridden and weak; Solo, somehow alive? Somehow in Brussels? Meeting with Wufei? Then he realised that, no, Solo was very dead, and gone, and Wufei wouldn’t know him anyway. So, what…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think he’s your twin,” Wufei continued, watching Duo’s expression cautiously, getting only a startled, blank stare in return. “He looks </span>
  <em>
    <span>just </span>
  </em>
  <span>like you. Sounds just like you, just… a different you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...I don’t understand,” Duo said, because he felt he had to say something, but he still wasn’t quite comprehending what he was being told. It was like he was hearing white noise; like he had suddenly forgotten what words actually meant, could hear them but not understand them as anything other than sounds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He said he was born on L2,” Wufei told him, “and adopted, moved to Earth as a baby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t have a brother,” Duo told him, firmly, certain. “I don’t have any family. That’s what bein’ an orphan is.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duo…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where did you even meet this guy? This crackpot doppelganger?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s the solicitor working with me on the Hernandez case,” Wufei explained, as Duo stood abruptly and started to walk towards the kitchen, before changing his mind and whirling to stride back towards the sofa.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s a lawyer?” Duo demanded. “What’s his name, even?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Duo sneered. A normal name. An everyday name. For a </span>
  <em>
    <span>lawyer</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span> the </span>
  <em>
    <span>lawyer</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver McGann,” Wufei repeated, once Duo had finished grimacing, his voice even and calm. “It’s up to you what you want to do, but… people at HQ have noticed - they were commenting on it when we left, although he just laughed it off. And you’ll be back at HQ for your post-assignment sessions before he leaves, so you will meet him eventually.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you tell him about me?” Duo demanded sharply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course not,” Wufei said, and looked a little offended at the notion. “I wanted to speak to you first.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He chewed on his lip, and noticed Wufei staring at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” he asked, and at Wufei’s awkward expression, the way his gaze flicked away guiltily, Duo knew exactly what the other man was thinking. Duo</span>
  <em>
    <span> knew</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and he was angry. “He’s not me! I’m not him!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Wufei insisted, standing and moving over, hands raised to try and placate him, even as Duo slapped them away irritably and fell back a step, ignoring the flash of hurt on his face in response. “I know you’re different people Duo, it’s just… uncanny.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck you, no it isn’t,” Duo snapped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He paused, scrubbed his hands over his face and let out a sigh that was almost a groan in frustration. This wasn’t right. This wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>right</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He didn’t have any family. He certainly didn’t have a brother, who was a fancy pants lawyer, called </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver who got adopted and taken off L2 as a baby. So, what, Oliver was the ‘buy one’ and Duo was the ‘get one free’ they opted not to take? Fuck that. Fuck them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fuck Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking his hands away from his face, he saw Wufei still stood in front of him. Silent, patient, and looking like he understood, and that he wanted to help but didn’t know how. Wufei’s face was very expressive, once you knew how to read the nuances. As his best friend, Duo prided himself on being very good at reading the nuances.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sighed again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What should I do?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei did the Wufei equivalent of a shrug - he pressed his lips together firmly and raised his eyebrows, tilting his head ever so slightly to one side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll struggle to avoid him when you come into work,” Wufei pointed out. “You could end up bumping into him unexpectedly, in a corridor full of people. You’d be off-guard, and unprepared.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was true. And if there was something Duo hated, it was being caught on the back foot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...He asked me if I wanted to get a drink tonight, but I said no. He suggested tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo paused, a thought occurred to him, strangely territorial that this interloper was marching into his life to steal not only his face, but his friend. A dark and dangerous feeling that stung more than he wanted, and it was a sting he hadn’t felt in a long while.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Was he asking you on a date?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To his surprise, Wufei flushed a little. But then, he’d never been good at handling any teasing about his love life - or emphatic lack thereof. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I doubt it. He’s married.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course he fuckin’ is. Jesus.” Duo sighed again, blowing the air out hard through his lips in a ‘pfffffft’ that pushed some of his bangs aside. “Right. Fine. Tomorrow night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The back room at the Duck,” Duo told him decisively. “I’ll ask Jim to close it off.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll bring him straight after work,” Wufei promised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Good. Great. It was a date.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver had seemed surprised, but genuinely pleased, when Wufei had followed up on the invitation for drinks the next evening. He suspected Oliver had taken it for a permanent blow off, and was pleasantly surprised when it turned out not to be. The smile he got for bringing it up again was bright and delighted, and very warm, and far too familiar for not having messy bangs in the way of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei ignored it, turned back to his work, and let Oliver hum happily to himself as they went through more papers, tallied more evidence. Tried not to think about how this was going to go.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tried not to feel a bit guilty about tricking Oliver into this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, is this the pub where the Preventers usually hang out?” Oliver asked cheerfully, later on, as they approached the Black Swan, better known as the Dirty Duck. The pub was old, but recently refurbished - clean, cheerful and cozy, with excellent drinks and good food. As well as a landlord who would occasionally put on a free round for the Preventers. It was also only a few minutes’ walk from the HQ, in the centre of the city, so it was easy enough to get to. Proximity helped its reputation a lot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Most of them, a lot of the time,” Wufei allowed, holding the door open to let the other man pass through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, it’s just like the pub near Da’s house,” Oliver said, with a broad grin and a satisfied tone. He ran his hand approvingly along the varnished wood bar and nodded his thanks as Wufei ordered a beer for him. “Hey, maybe I’ll meet this Maxwell everyone’s been chattin’ about. Apparently he’s my long lost twin.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei grunted, paying for the drinks. He passed one to Oliver, took the other - not for him, for Duo, just in case - and started leading the way through the pub, past the clusters of other Preventers, who were casting Oliver sidelong glances, or either outright staring at him, towards the back of the pub.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You takin’ me to the VIP area?” Oliver joked, as they passed empty tables and kept walking. “Am I a VIP?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Outside the back room, Wufei paused, sighed, glanced around, and realised he couldn’t send Oliver in there blind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look,” he said in an undertone, turning to face Oliver and getting a startled look in response. “I know Maxwell. And.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stopped - it had been hard enough to phrase this with Duo, who he </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew</span>
  </em>
  <span>. How did you explain it to a stranger?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...And?” Oliver prompted, and he was beginning to look uneasy, a bit like he was regretting coming to the pub with a man who was behaving very erratically, and frankly it probably all looked very sinister from where Oliver was standing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>And</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Wufei forced himself to continue, blurting it all out before he could change his mind, “I think he might </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span> be your long lost twin, and he’s in here to meet you, because I didn’t think either of you would want the first encounter to be in public.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver stared at him like he had said he enjoyed strangling cats in his spare time. Wufei couldn’t blame him, because honestly he would be thinking the exact same thing, were he in Oliver’s position.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, he laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re fuckin’ with me,” Oliver declared. “I get it!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not,” Wufei promised. “Ask around, it's not exactly my </span>
  <em>
    <span>ouvre</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look, you got me,” the other man said, and it started to sound a little strained, “but let’s not wear the joke out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were beginning to draw more odd looks, clustered as they were by the door to the back room, and Wufei figured at this stage, he had done all he could. He stepped aside, gestured to the door, and raised his eyebrows. Oliver looked suspicious, first at Wufei, then at the door handle, before setting his shoulders and opening it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, but this better be a fuckin’ ‘welcome to the city’ party…” Oliver warned, with a slight grin over his shoulder as he stepped through the door. “I don’t want to be hazed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei followed behind him, closing the door quietly, and watched as Oliver turned to look around the room and saw the only other occupant, sat on a table, swinging his legs and turning an empty glass around in his hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Welcome to the city?” Duo offered, his voice rough and his face pale, as his gaze darted quickly across Oliver - taking in everything Wufei had noted the day before, every detail.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver, for his part, stood frozen, stunned. He just gaped at Duo, wordlessly, making at most a strangled noise at the back of his throat. He flinched when Duo hopped off the table, setting his glass aside, and came to stand in front of him, measuring their comparative heights, searching out the minute details in his features to try and find something - </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything</span>
  </em>
  <span> - that was different.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was almost stranger seeing them together than it had been seeing Oliver alone. Wufei found himself holding his breath and staring as the two of them stood nose-to-nose, seeing exactly </span>
  <em>
    <span>how</span>
  </em>
  <span> identical they were. It was like a mirror. Expressions and styling choices aside, they were exactly the same.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Impeccable suit to well-worn jeans and t-shirt; overcoat to leather jacket; polished Oxfords to big black boots; startled expression to defensive scowl.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei wasn't even sure how he felt about it, so he couldn't imagine how they must be feeling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s your blood type?” Duo demanded, making Oliver jump again, and spill a little of his beer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A - A negative,” Oliver stammered. “Are you-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Any allergies?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Shit. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit!” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Duo turned away, scowling, but took the beer that Wufei held out to him without even looking. “Jesus.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is this?” Oliver demanded finally, turning to Wufei for an explanation. “Who is he?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duo Maxwell,” Wufei said mildly. “Your 'long lost twin’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Said twin had currently downed nearly half his beer as he’d strode around muttering darkly to himself, before circling back into Oliver's personal space.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what happened? Mommy and Daddy wanted a kid, but weren't interested in the free gift with purchase?” he sneered, gesturing to himself self-deprecatingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Leave them out of this,” Oliver warned, metaphorical hackles raising.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, you get that from them, then? They had no problems leavin’ </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span> out of it, apparently.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was the sound of two beer glasses hitting a wooden floor, a fist hitting a face, and then Wufei was diving in to pull Oliver out of a fight that he had no chance of winning.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Swearing and struggling, he separated the two of them with as much patience as he could muster, then went to get a dustpan, and a replacement drink for each of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was surprised it had taken that long for a punch to be thrown.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was surprised it hadn't been Duo throwing it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he returned, the two of them were sitting as far away from each other as possible in the room, and looking sullen. Oliver was flexing his fingers, trying to get used to the unfamiliar sting on his knuckles. Duo was slouched down, totally indifferent to the angry red mark on his jaw.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That's one difference, at least,” Duo muttered finally. “You hit like a little kid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh piss off,” Oliver snapped. “It's not like your parents told you either. How do you know you weren't adopted first, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> got left behind?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The frigid silence got impossibly colder. Wufei finished sweeping up the broken glass, and carefully set the dustpan aside, ready to intervene again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver seemed to notice the change, and glanced across to see Duo glaring at the ground with a mulish expression, mouth twisted like he had tasted something terribly bitter. And Oliver realised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” he said. “Oh, God, I’m sorry, I didn't… Foster care?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Somethin’ like that,” Duo grunted, still not meeting Oliver's eye.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Silence again, although more awkward than angry. Wufei settled himself by the door, waited. This wasn't his conversation to lead.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The air was heavy with far too many things to say, and too little idea where to start.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sooo…” Oliver tried again, turning his beer glass in his hand in the exact same way Duo was doing across the room, even as they were both studiously not looking at each other. “Why the long hair?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Makes me look sexy,” Duo quipped. “Why the suit?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They only let you practice law in your jammies if it's your birthday.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This… was going to be a long evening.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, they had started challenging each other - either-or questions to test tastes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kirk or Picard?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kirk. Burger or hot dog?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Burger. Rugby or football?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jesus, neither.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...hockey?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just mark me up as a 'no’ on field sports.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not big on sport on L2?” Oliver asked, cautious, glancing across at Duo, who was laying flat on his back along the cushioned bench on the other side of the room, staring at the ceiling, fingers laced together on his stomach, thumbs tapping restlessly against each other. The only outward sign of his fight-or-flight instinct battling against his composure.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not big on anything on L2.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo wasn’t giving much back, Wufei noted. He was sat, thankfully forgotten, by the door and ready to wade in should things start heading south again. But the tension had become less defensive. More awkward, stunned. A bit bruised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At least Oliver was </span>
  <em>
    <span>trying</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not that he could blame Duo for not wanting to. If ever there was a big shiny reminder of ‘could have been’, it was right across the room, with a law degree and an expensive suit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...When did you come down to Earth?” Oliver tried again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“16 years ago,” Duo said. “Give or take.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a pause, whilst Oliver did a calculation, and then frowned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How’d that happen? They had that travel embargo in place back then, there’s no way they’d have moved you if you were still in the system…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I stowed away on a pirate shuttle,” Duo told him, deadpan. “Worked my way through space. Then they made me their captain.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you make everything a joke?” Oliver snapped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver opened his mouth to respond, obviously having expected Duo to argue, he faltered for a second, before letting out a frustrated noise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you think that maybe you could try for ten minutes to make a fuckin’ effort to take this seriously - “</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hid on a Sweeper ship, and by the time they found me they were already in space, so they just dropped me when they could, and I ended up on Earth,” Duo interrupted him, abrupt and matter of fact. “Happy?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a long pause. Oliver was frowning at Duo, Duo was looking at the ceiling, his face a perfect mask of unconcern.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At fifteen?” Oliver said skeptically. “Bullshit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wufei can vouch for me,” Duo told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about school?” he challenged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I got a job.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What kind of job?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Project Management,” Duo said, without skipping a beat, and Wufei had to disguise a surprised snort as a cough at that particular interpretation of their previous life. “Making sure that stuff that needed to get done got done.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bullshit,” Oliver repeated emphatically. “Not at fifteen, without finishin’ school.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What can I say? I was good at what I did.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was definitely rubbing Oliver up the wrong way. The frustration was evident on his face, and Wufei was fascinated by how open the expression was - no attempt to hide behind one mask or another, given away only by tensions in muscles that were barely visible. This was a clearly set jaw, flared nostrils, gritted teeth. He looked like he was on the verge of throwing his glass across the room, eyes boring into the seemingly-unconcerned figure across from him. Wufei rarely saw Duo’s face so openly angry, this evidently showing hurt or weakness – and whilst it wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>Duo</span>
  </em>
  <span>, it was still his face, being worn by his brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was a new concept for any of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Trowa had a ‘sister’, although if Cathy knew about the quote marks around it she would definitely do her best to remove their spines with her teeth; Quatre had 29 sisters, a flock of women ready to conquer the known world, and probably more than capable of doing so. But he’d barely known them growing up, and sisters were different, the dynamic was different.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The only brotherhood any of them had was entirely circumstantial. Bonds of battle, not blood.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a lot of… weight behind the concept of a brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver appeared to think about calling it a night, standing and setting his empty glass down on a nearby table with exaggerated care. Then he reached into his inside pocket and pulled out his wallet, producing a small, white card that he dropped next to his glass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s my number,” he said to Duo, without actually looking at him. “This is as weird for me as it is for you, but… I think maybe we should try again, when we’ve had time to process this. Since we’re… family, I guess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Family,” Duo repeated, and his voice was a monotone, clearly all he could manage as he strangled whatever inflection he would have otherwise put on the word. Oliver pressed his lips together, just about restrained himself from rolling his eyes, before heading towards the door. He paused on his way out and looked at Wufei, managing a wry smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I’m never fuckin’ going drinking with you again,” he said, tired, and seemed satisfied with Wufei’s huff of a laugh, stepping through the door and leaving the two of them alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That went better than I anticipated,” Wufei said finally.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh fuck off,” Duo said, rolling onto his side, putting his back to the room and his face into the pillowed benchback. After a long silence, where he was definitely sulking but definitely not going to admit it, Duo spoke again. “Maybe he’s not really my brother. Maybe it’s just one of those freaks of nature where people look alike when they’re no relation at all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I imagine the odds of either instance are fairly similar,” Wufei told him placidly. “But perhaps you should consider what you want to do about it if he does turn out to be your brother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Do</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Duo rolled over again to give Wufei an incredulous and disgusted look. “I’m not gonna </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> anything. Oliver can fall down a hole for all I care.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s got a wife and kids, you know,” Wufei said, and Duo went very still. “A boy and a girl.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course he fucking does,” Duo spat, pushing up to stand and pace again. “Perfect fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span> with his perfect fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>life</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Beautiful wife and two point four children –“</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your niece and nephew,” Wufei interrupted, standing too. He wasn’t as tall as Duo, but it had the intended effect, quelling the other man’s anger now he wasn’t towering above the whole room. The braided man drew in a little, the needle on his mood swinging slightly away from anger and back towards sulky. “Your sister-in-law. There’s a whole family out there, </span>
  <em>
    <span>your</span>
  </em>
  <span> family, if you can stop behaving like a child for half an hour.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The last bit was unnecessary, and it put Duo’s hackles up, but Wufei was feeling fairly testy himself for being in the middle of this, and extremely off kilter, so the scathing look he shot Duo in response was enough to forestall whatever expletive the other man had been about to fling at him and instead he just bristled in silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s already been made pretty clear that I wasn’t wanted in that family unit,” Duo muttered sourly. “I don’t need to be told twice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And there was the crux of the matter. The abandonment issues which plagued each of their family of five in their own way, to a greater or lesser extent. Made them afraid to show weakness, to let people near. Made them cling on with a death grip to anyone who made it past their defences. The issue which kept Wufei by Duo’s side and twisted his heart, which kept his mouth shut for fear of losing everything.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t even say it,” Duo said, seeing the expression on Wufei’s face. “You’re not my fucking therapist.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wasn’t Oliver who made that decision,” Wufei said instead, picking up the business card which had been left on the table, and holding it out to Duo. “Maybe give him a chance.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He doesn’t want me in his picture perfect life.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He wanted to try again,” Wufei reminded him, waggling the card at Duo insistently until he took it, “and that was after half an hour of you having a temper tantrum. Clearly he’s got a strong constitution.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo ran his fingers across the edge of the card, staring at it thoughtfully, before it disappeared into some pocket somewhere and he shot Wufei an apologetic grin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’d better be careful, if you keep talkin’ shit I might swap you for him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’m safe,” Wufei said dryly, falling into step beside Duo as they headed for the back exit of the pub, slipping into the empty alley behind, “given as your first instinct was literally to start fighting with your own reflection.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My reflection could hit better than that,” Duo scoffed, but he stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets and walked home with Wufei in almost companionable silence. Almost – Wufei could see the thoughts spinning behind the placidly happy mask; but for now it was enough.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello everyone it's been at least two years and I've been working on an original novel and this monstrosity for all that time. </p><p>This was a thought exercise as another attempt of mine to see if I could do the "long-lost twin" trope but make it make sense with the characters and the canon, like I did with the baby in Such Little Things. </p><p>This was supposed to be humorous, fluffy hijinks but then my brain remembered that all these characters have trauma and severe abandonment issues. So what was intended to be a little bit of Mistake Identity lolz, as well as Normal Person Can't Work Out Why Everyone Is So Weird chuckles, we got this.</p><p>Sorry.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was hard to say who was more surprised when they walked into the med lab the following Friday morning. Oliver was surprised because he thought his room with Wufei had been relocated, and walked in to find Duo fiddling with a scalpel. Sally was surprised because she was expecting a quiet morning and walked in to find two Duos in her lab. And Wufei, skulking next to the coat stand, who had agreed to be there to act as a referee in case any more wrestling broke out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei took the initiative to close the door quietly behind her as she stood, coffee in hand, and gawped at the two tall, chestnut-haired men who were waiting expectantly for her. Duo had relocated himself to lounge on the examination table, one knee casually bent and head resting on his hand. He had asked Wufei to 'draw me like one of your French girls’ when he had assumed the position, and Oliver didn't seem to know whether that was funny or irritating. For his part, the Irishman was leaning against the far end of the examination table, arms crossed and suit impeccable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I died,” Sally said, finally. “I died and this is my punishment for all my sins. Eternity with two Maxwells and a Chang to harass me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rude,” said Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not a Maxwell,” said Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You deserve worse punishment than this just for how difficult you are with me,” said Wufei, earning himself a nasty look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She set her coffee down on the side, giving it a longing look like she wished it wasn't 9:00am and she could stick a couple of measures of something alcoholic in it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why are you here?” she asked, shrugging into her lab coat and turning back to them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We think there’s a chance we could be related,” Oliver said, when Duo didn’t immediately step forward with an answer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, really? What gave you that idea?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Step off, Sally.” Duo swung his legs around so he was sitting up and facing her, his tone warning. “This is weird enough without you bein’ sarcastic.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Someone left his sense of humour in bed this morning,” Sally muttered. Wufei was very aware that the scalpel Duo had been fidgeting with earlier hadn’t been put back where it lived, so the odds were good it had disappeared up Duo’s sleeve.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This was something common when Duo first came back from an assignment – he was always more tense anyway, and his street instincts seemed to come back. He’d wander around places picking up discarded items which might be useful as a weapon later, concealing them with ease. A week back after six months undercover with some of North America’s most unpleasant people didn’t mean Duo was close to approaching status quo yet, and this whole situation was just winding him back up. Another reason Wufei wasn’t quite willing to leave Duo alone with Oliver just yet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thankfully, Sally seemed to be reading the signals just fine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you want from me? I’m Sally, by the way,” she said, holding her hand out to Oliver, who shook it and introduced himself, whilst Duo started to look impatient.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A DNA test,” Duo said, “to confirm we’re related, and this isn’t just some flukey co-incidence.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver snorted – he had made it clear that he didn’t see much point in the process whilst they were waiting for Sally, feeling that the current evidence in front of them was plenty convincing enough. Sally took a moment to study him quizzically, gaze flicking between the two men as she catalogued each similarity and difference, the same way Wufei had. This did not escape Duo’s notice, and he scowled at his boots until she spoke again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I really don’t think it’s necessary,” Sally told them with characteristic frankness. “I’ve got factory-made plates that look less alike than the two of you – oh calm down,” she said, before Duo could start to protest, “I’ll do it, of course I will, but you won’t get the results until Monday at the earliest – the processing labs are closed on the weekends.” She pulled a pair of sterile gloves from her desk and grabbed a test tube and a swab, advancing on Duo with intent. “I’m pretty sure this counts as a misuse of Preventers’ resources though,” she muttered as she worked, “and you’re not even supposed to be here – don’t argue with me, I’m swabbing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Satisfied, she sealed the DNA-coated swab into the tube and labelled it, before repeating the process on Oliver, who was watching Duo with some cautious suspicion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright boys, you’re free to go. I guess you can spend the weekend doing some brotherly bonding to make up for lost time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The laugh she got in response to that was hollow, and the look she shot Wufei as they were leaving made sure he was certain he was going to be explaining </span>
  <em>
    <span>everything</span>
  </em>
  <span> to her later. That was something to look forward to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver was the first out the door, with Wufei a split-second behind him, which meant Wufei was able to spot Heero and Trowa stood a few feet away, but was too late to stop things. Instead, he could only watch the seconds-long reaction with a leaden feeling in his gut, feeling like time had slowed down to really draw out every bit of awkwardness from the situation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair were pouring over a data tablet, and registered Oliver out of the corner of their eyes, their brains recognising his features without providing any direct context. Raising his head, Heero began to call out to Duo, and then hesitated, stunned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duo, your hair -!” Trowa began to blurt, before stopping as Duo appeared through the doorway with a particularly sour expression on his face. He hadn’t missed that Heero and Trowa had mistaken Oliver for him, and he clearly wasn’t happy about it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei wondered if this would happen every time, until everyone had met Oliver. That would be painful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In the middle of the suddenly chilly atmosphere stood Oliver, clearly feeling extremely awkward, and not at all happy that he had become an exhibit in some kind of Preventer’s Travelling Show. Three days previously he had been living a normal life, now he had a more than fairly rude twin and a whole parade of people gawking at him. The second-hand feeling of conspicuousness was draining Wufei, he could only just imagine how Oliver was feeling. He didn’t even know any of the faces studying him intently; whilst next to him Duo was projecting intense resentment that everyone he knew was so fascinated with Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t help they were chalk and cheese – Duo slouched irritably in his leather jacket and tattered jeans, Oliver stood straight in his impeccable suit. Trowa and Heero clearly had a lot of questions, and no-one was in the mood to answer them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We need to get back to those files,” Wufei said, giving Oliver an escape route, and glancing at Duo to let him know that he could jump on the excuse. There was definitely relief in the look Duo gave him, although it was tempered by annoyance that it was Oliver being addressed directly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll walk down with you guys,” Duo offered, “need to get outta here before Une spots me, or there’ll be trouble.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded a casual goodbye to Heero and Trowa, as if there was nothing strange at all, and the three of them made a brisk retreat towards the stairwell. Heero started to move after them, but Trowa stilled him with a hand on his arm, clearly reading that Duo’s mood wasn’t going to handle any pressure right now. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know you’re going to have to tell them what’s going on,” Wufei said, once they were out of earshot. “And Quatre too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?” Oliver asked. “Who are they?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No-one,” Duo muttered, clattering down the stairs ahead of them, gait ungainly and uncoordinated, but each foot hitting the step with precision, nary a stumble in sight. “And no I don’t. Who says I have to tell them?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duo…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t ‘Duo’ me,” he snapped, stopping at the next half-landing and whirling to glare up at the pair of them as they followed him at a more sedate pace. “Maybe I’m thinkin’ about Olly here. Maybe he doesn’t wanna be dragged all up in my life before we’ve confirmed we’re even related.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t fret on my account,” Oliver said, stopping a few stairs up and meeting Duo’s eyes firmly. “As far as I’m concerned, the test isn’t going to tell us what we don’t already know. I think we need to start getting used to the idea that we’re brothers.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo studied him carefully for a minute, wariness around the edge of his face and his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And when we’ve got used to it? What then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver shrugged, and that gesture was all too familiar to Wufei. It was strange to see the nature against nurture in the two of them - the assumed characteristics as a result of their upbringing, and the ones which appeared to be coded into their DNA. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I dunno about you, but for me, family’s family. I don’t want to go through the rest of my life pretending you don’t exist when clearly you do. So. I guess we work on building a relationship, of some kind.” He trotted down the last few steps to stand face-to-face with Duo, and held out his hand - a peace offering, and one that Duo’s gaze flicked down to with all the caution of a cagey dog. “I was gonna go home this weekend, but I’ve cancelled - maybe we should see how we do together, before we bring the rest of the family in. What d’you say?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blue eyes turned to Wufei for guidance, but he stayed back, kept his face blank. No matter his feelings on the subject, no matter what he thought was best, this wasn’t Wufei’s decision to make. He couldn’t influence it. After a moment of careful scrutiny, Duo looked back to Oliver and slowly grasped his hand in return.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure,” he said blithely, his best ‘it-doesn’t-matter’ smile on his face. “Why the hell not.”</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo had slunk off out the back exit shortly afterwards, all casual and breezy in a way that was too tight at the edges, and meant that Wufei would have to go and check on him later. Oliver and Wufei had retreated to their room full of files, resuming their previous seats across the table from each other. And then they had just sat and stared at the paperwork for a bit, not reading it, just… processing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For his part, Wufei was remembering the expression on Duo’s face after he had offered an explicit escape for Oliver and only an implied lifeline for his friend. Duo was already clearly having some territorial issues about Oliver, didn’t want Oliver to be introduced to his friends - possibly due to some twisted thought that they would prefer Oliver to him, possibly because he saw what he had now as something precious and finally </span>
  <em>
    <span>his</span>
  </em>
  <span> and he didn’t want to share it. This was only going to make things worse.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei wasn’t the most social person by any means - disinclined to make friends or provide a welcoming countenance for strangers, he was satisfied with his lot and generally impressed people more with his abilities and work ethic than by his ability to ingratiate himself. So why, all of a sudden, was he putting himself out to assist Oliver - a stranger, to all intents and purposes - even over Duo? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” Oliver said, his voice cutting through the thoughts churning in Wufei’s mind. He looked tired, suddenly, stretched and stressed, sat at the table like everything was weighing him down. “You’re just about the only person I know here, and you didn’t have to help me out like you have been - I really appreciate it. And… if there’s only one person I can talk about this with, I’m glad it’s you. I’m getting the feeling you’re someone who can be trusted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And just like that, there was the answer. Whilst it was Oliver, and consciously he knew it was Oliver, Wufei was watching Duo’s face in all its vulnerability, in a way he had never seen Duo. Over the years, the American pilot had let his guards down around the others some, but he was never truly an open book. And Wufei, over those same years, had grown a secret, insistent need for Duo not to hold back with him, to be able to help him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hypocritical of him, given how much he was holding back from Duo, and patronising to think that Duo would even need his help, never mind want it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But sometimes, when Duo came back from long ops, there was something lurking there that Wufei just wanted to help him carry. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Perhaps by calculated design, if he were feeling ungenerous towards himself, or perhaps because he was the only one who made that much effort, Duo had opened up towards Wufei more than the others. Just by inches more, but it was there. Which was why he was trusting Wufei to help him with Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And Wufei was letting him down by trying to fill the hole inside him with Oliver, pretending it was Duo’s bare emotions he was seeing, Duo’s gratitude.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It isn’t a problem,” he said, flicking open the folder in front of him. “It was the right thing to do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re a good guy, Wufei,” Oliver said, shaking his head slightly and helping himself to his own file.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If only that were true, Wufei thought, distaste bitter in his mouth and shame wrapping itself up in his stomach.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Duo was finding it hard to identify the precise emotion he was feeling as he waited for Oliver to show up on Saturday afternoon. Nervous? Probably. Annoyed? Probably again. Annoyed at himself for being nervous? Definitely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was also annoyed by how relieved he’d been when Wufei had come round to his place immediately after work the night before, and a little smug and pleased that Wufei had chosen him over Oliver.  It had been gnawing at him all day, that Wufei seemed to be extending himself to protect Duo’s new twin, more so than Duo had ever seen him do for anyone else. That was suspicious in itself, Wufei was more inclined to avoid people than ingratiate himself, so seeing him not only be pleasant, but actively supportive to this interloper was setting Duo’s back right up in a way he didn’t like at all. He felt like a toddler, not wanting to share his friends, but at the same time he felt territorial over them, over the bonds they had. They’d never really be challenged by outsiders before, insular as they were.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver was a new threat, unknown and unaware of the status quo. And completely capable of throwing it all out of whack.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lurking in a doorway, half-hidden in the shadows of the building and the tree planted in front of it, Duo had the perfect view to see when Oliver arrived at the statue in the town square. Duo had almost expected him not to show, but there he was. And not in a suit, apparently he owned a pair of jeans, although they were so neat and tidy they could have just come off the mannequin. A shirt and a v-neck jumper over the top, with some kind of styled suede jacket over that. He looked like a geography teacher. There was no way they could really be related, surely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Except Duo watched him stand, back to the plinth of the statue, eyes scanning the crowd for Duo, checking his watch to see what the time was, if he was late, before stuffing his hands back into his pockets, and somehow Duo knew like lead in the pit of his stomach. He knew.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bringing his fingers to his lips, he gave a sharp, piercing whistle, and when Oliver turned towards the noise, waved him over. Oliver looked first puzzled, then a little annoyed, and he walked over pointedly slowly to meet him,</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought we were meeting by the statue,” he said, when he got close enough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I ain’t a fan of open spaces,” Duo told him. “What d’you wanna drink?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s only just lunchtime,” Oliver said slowly, as if that were any kind of answer. He looked at Duo’s jacket uneasily, as if he expected Duo to whip out a hip flask of something.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look man, you ain’t gonna get any judgement from me, just pick your poison.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver swallowed, looked up and down the road, then back at Duo, as if trying to parse why his twin was skulking in a darkened doorway like some kind of two-bit fence who didn’t know how not to look shady. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think some alcohol might… take the edge off,” Oliver allowed, finally.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe we </span>
  <em>
    <span>are</span>
  </em>
  <span> related,” Duo purred, and slipped out past his brother into the street, leading him away from the crowds, from town. Oliver glanced behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aren’t the bars that way?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not the bars I go to,” said Duo, and he didn’t wait to see if Oliver caught up with him as he slipped down a side alley and began to roam his way between the service paths and shortcuts of the city. It smelled down here, the bitter tang of run-off from bins and the pungent stench of dried out urine. A quick look over his shoulder as he slid around another corner showed him the expression of distaste on Oliver’s face as he picked his way around puddles and trash. Wouldn’t want to get those fancy shoes dirty, Duo thought with a barely-suppressed sneer. Never mind how naive it was to follow a guy you barely knew down a back alley. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>How was this guy still alive? Although maybe law didn’t quite have the… occupational hazards Duo had encountered in his life. Maybe he had to stop evaluating Oliver by Gundam Pilot standards and start just judging him as a… normal person.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>God, what was even the bar for normal people? When did Duo last actually spend time with a normal person who wasn’t in the service industry and bringing him booze or food?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On that note - he paused outside one of the many nondescript doors along the alley and waited for Oliver to catch up. He rapped on the door with his knuckles as his brother drew near, and it opened before Oliver had a chance to voice the question he had obviously been stewing on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yo, Maxwell, I thought you’d died for real this time,” Nate said, bumping his fist against Duo’s in greeting, steam billowing out from the dishwasher behind him. “But I guess you just got cloned instead?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nate this is my…” Say it, dammit, he’d have to say it some time. “My </span>
  <em>
    <span>brother</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Oliver.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice to meet you,” Nate called, lifting his hand in a wave. “Don’t he know how to use the front door either? This some family thing or what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If I used the front door, I’d never get to see you,” Duo said, fluttering his eyelashes charmingly, as Nate stood aside and let them both into the back of the bustling kitchen, calling to the other kitchen staff that Maxwell was back, and he brought a friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is this place?” Oliver asked, sliding up close behind Duo and making all the hairs on the back of his neck stand up - there were only four other people he let get that close to his back, and Oliver wasn’t one of them, but his twin seemed freaked out by the noise and crowd of the kitchen, and stuck to Duo like a rash as Nate led the way through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s just a bar, chill out,” Duo muttered, trying to shrug him off. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then why couldn’t we go in the </span>
  <em>
    <span>front</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And miss catchin’ up with my buddies?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He bumped fists with Nate again when they slipped through the kitchen door and right into the empty back booth of a comparatively quiet and dark pub. People were starting to trickle in for lunch, the front of the room near the big windows airier and more inviting. A pool table sat under a big TV which screened a seemingly never-ending array of sports fixtures, but otherwise this place was low key. Unassuming. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Safe.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was relieved to see it was Herc behind the bar, and signalled for two drinks, getting a thumbs up in response. Oliver slid in opposite him, back to the rest of the room through the tall seats of the booth, which meant Duo only had people he knew in the kitchen behind him and a clear view of anyone else entering the bar.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It’d be a few weeks before he stopped looking for people hunting him down. That was how it usually went.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Herc sat the beers on the table, and beamed at Duo, before casting a curious glance at Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s my body double,” Duo told Herc dryly. “I’ve hired him for my own protection.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, like you need protection,” Herc snorted, and clapped Oliver on the shoulder, making him spill the beer he had just reached for. “Duo’s family here, so you’re family too. If you need anything, just ask.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He trundled back to the bar as Oliver shook beer off his hand and looked speculatively at Duo again. He telegraphed like nothing else, Duo observed. If he were a mark, Duo would have him down to his underwear in half an hour. God, it was like watching a child.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, how do you know…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not really the type to sit here and go over ‘once upon a times’,” Duo cut Oliver off, picking up his own beer. “I don’t think you are either. Don’t tell you anythin’ about a person really, just where they came from.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” said Oliver slowly, “how about this then - two truths and a lie. We take turns to say three things about ourselves - only one of them is a lie, and the other one’s got to guess which.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo nodded slowly, processing that. Seemed like an easy way to control what Oliver found out about him, without having to do major twists and turns to gloss over the more improbable bits. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>And Oliver didn’t know about his policy on not lying.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think it’s missin’ just one thing,” Duo told him, and stood, making his way to the bar and returning with a bottle of vodka and two shot glasses, which he neatly filled to the top, Oliver’s eyebrows rising with the level of liquid in the glass. “You guess wrong, you drink.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s… been a while since I’ve done shots,” Oliver said slowly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“See, we’re learnin’ about each other already.” Duo settled back in his seat. “You go first.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay…” Oliver wet his lips as he thought, eyes moving from left to right as he pondered lies and truths, his line of sight betraying which side of the truth he was mulling over. “Okay. I used to be an altar boy. I once won a prize for jam making. I know all the words to ‘We didn’t start the fire’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Please,” Duo said with a scoff, “anyone can memorise the words to ‘We didn’t start the fire’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So which one’s the lie?” Oliver prompted, actually managing to keep his face impassive for once. Guess being a lawyer had taught him some control over his expressions, imagine how many cases you would tank if you broadcast like that in court.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo propped his chin on his hand and studied Oliver thoughtfully. It was weird, the same sort of cognitive dissonance he got from looking at a photograph of himself - he was used to seeing his face in mirror image, everything reversed, so seeing things the way other people saw him seemed unnatural. Never mind the different hair and clothes. It was uncanny, and uncomfortable, and he guessed he saw why Wufei had been so disconcerted by it. It didn’t matter that this guy looked like </span>
  <em>
    <span>Twilight Zone</span>
  </em>
  <span> Duo, he still looked like Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo didn’t know how he felt about it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think you were an altar boy,” he said, finally. “You don’t got the look of someone who had to sit through high mass on the regular.” Duo knew what that was like. Easter Vigil in particular had always been a bitch, but the extra kneeling and standing that came on Good Friday had left him stiff the whole weekend after he first did it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver grinned back at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, Mam didn’t trust me anywhere near the altar. She used to bribe me with fish and chips to get me through the evening mass on a Saturday. Your foster family Catholic too, then?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, pretty Catholic.” Duo tried to imagine having to be bribed with food to sit through mass, instead of doing it to try and make Sister Helen happy. Maybe it was different if you had to go every week your whole life though, rather than for such a short time. Maybe it was different if your only real experience of love and kindness hadn’t been packaged up in the church. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was a harsh stab in the gut, the fact that for Oliver his childhood hadn’t included any doubt that he would be loved, or kept, or cared for. That he could take things for granted like that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You still go to church much?” Oliver asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nah,” Duo shrugged the melancholy off with a breezy grin. “I turned into somethin’ of a nihilist as I got older. Things seem less personal when you don’t believe it’s all the whim of some all-powerful dude.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s your confirmation name? Mine’s James, although Mam wanted Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Never got confirmed. Had just been revvin’ up for first communion when… I moved,” Duo finished. He took a big mouthful of beer, although he’d wanted to reach for the shot glass for the burn of the vodka to kick the memories away. This had been a dumb idea. Time to change the subject.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My turn,” he said, drumming his fingers on the table, the rhythm forcing his mind away from the dark thoughts and to the task at hand, grounding him. “I can juggle. I’m fluent in Spanish. I’m ambidextrous.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver leaned back in his seat and folded his arms, looking thoughtful. Perhaps this was the look he got on his face in court, when he was lawyering. Maybe he was about to examine the witness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How many things can you juggle?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How many you got? The highest I got was eight but I ain’t tried nine yet.” By the time he’d mastered eight juggling balls, and then clubs, Trowa had finally let him try the knives, which had been a) super ridiculous of him because he knew Duo was good with knifes, and b) a little disappointing, ‘cause for all they looked flashy the juggling knives were all blunt, with edges thick enough to be used for shelving.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Say something in Spanish.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Alguna cosa</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Duo said blithely, feeling facetious. “It’s cheatin’ if you ask me to do it. You gotta guess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The ambidextrous thing, then,” Oliver said. “Wufei said you’re left handed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I always heard left handers ate their twin in the womb,” Duo muttered, reaching into his inside pocket and pulling out a scrap of paper and a pen. “Guess I didn’t do very well at that.” As he spoke, he wrote his name with his left hand, and then swapped to his right to repeat the trick. They were identical, even if they weren’t neat. “That’s the thing ‘bout bein’ left-handed - it’s generally easier to learn how to do things both ways. Drink up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nodding his head to accept the defeat, Oliver picked up the shot glass, looking a little squeamish at the thought of it. He hesitated for a second, then knocked it back in one go, slamming the glass firmly on the table. Guy had some spunk at least. Maybe he wasn’t all bad.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Well, Duo’d get him wasted enough to find out what he was really like. Home truths came out with alcohol, unless you knew how to handle it. It was something Duo was very good at handling, bonding over booze was common amongst the people he generally associated with.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me again?” Oliver asked, his voice a little hoarse, as Duo topped up the glass and nodded. “Alright. My first pet was a rock named Dave. I’ve got fifteen cousins. I can play the guitar.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo barely heard the last one, his mind was stuttering to a halt on the second one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I call bull,” he said, “you ain’t got fifteen cousins.” And he was saying that as someone who knew a guy with twenty-nine sisters.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s true,” Oliver said, looking very pleased with himself. “Two Irish Catholic parents, it’s a wonder there’re only fifteen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The vodka burned down his throat, but it didn’t do much to block out the bitter thought that Duo had been so alone all his life because the karmic balance of the universe had overcompensated with fucking Oliver and his fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>tribe</span>
  </em>
  <span> of family…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t Oliver’s fault, Wufei’s voice rang in his head. Oliver didn’t know. Oliver </span>
  <em>
    <span>couldn’t </span>
  </em>
  <span>know.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’ll be… excited to meet you,” Oliver said, a little hesitant, perhaps seeing the way Duo’s knuckles had gone white around the shot glass. “They’re hard work, but they’re good crack.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo cleared his throat and forced himself to let go of the glass, to set it carefully, if jerkily, down onto the tabletop. He couldn’t meet Oliver’s eyes for a long moment, the prospect of meeting the cousins stuck in his craw, and was followed immediately by the chilling thought that meeting the cousins would mean meeting the parents.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The parents who hadn’t wanted him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think it might be… kinda early for that,” Duo said, just about keeping his voice even. “Maybe let’s just concentrate on the two of us, for now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was plenty weird and difficult enough for Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This game was a stupid idea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me again,” he said, and if his voice was a little rough then he just had to hope Oliver wouldn’t pick up on it. He was definitely going to force things away from their families. “I’ve had 42 broken bones. I can rebuild any engine you put in front of me. I can steal anything from any person in here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anything from anyone?” Oliver scoffed. “I don’t believe you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s true, so you gotta drink,” Duo said, and Oliver obliged, even though he looked sceptical. “How about a bet - I’ll take somethin’ before we head home. If I manage it, you gotta do two more shots.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His brother looked cautious, as though not wanting to back down from a bet, but the lawyer in him was hesitant to be involved with anything criminal, even petty pickpocketing for the sake of a dare.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll put it back,” Duo added, a little surprised it wasn’t obvious. It did the trick though, and Oliver nodded. Duo held out his left hand to shake on the bet, and Oliver’s grasp was firm, and warm, and sure, and his hands were so smooth compared to Duo’s. He felt like his rough skin was scraping a layer off Oliver’s palms, save the small callouses - tiny, insignificant - which clearly came from holding a pen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He waited until Oliver sat back and had carefully - a slight frown of concentration creasing between his eyebrows as he did so, forcing focus around the fuzz of alcohol - refilled his shot glass. He waited until the bottle had been set back down, and Oliver was looking back at him, and only then, allowing himself to indulge in a smug smirk, did he place Oliver’s watch on the table.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took his brother a moment to process it, and then he checked his wrist, and then grabbed the watch to make sure it was his, before buckling it back on his arm and looking a bit astounded at Duo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Two shots,” Duo reminded him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was going to speed things up a little.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>H</span>
  <span>e shouldn’t have been surprised when Trowa and Heero turned up at his door that Saturday, or that they’d come to see Wufei because Duo wasn’t at home or answering his phone. They probably assumed that Duo would be there, because if they thought Wufei was going to explain the situation then they were dead wrong. When Trowa punched in Quatre’s number and the blond appeared on the vid screen, confused and worried, and clearly trying to coax some response out of Wufei, he wasn’t going to crack. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The only surprise was that it had taken them so long to storm his apartment. Possibly they’d taken that long to draw up a plan of attack - and there was no way Heero was going to bunk off work to try and get personal things done. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had been optimistic to think they would leave when he refused to tell them anything, when he had told them it wasn’t his business to tell. It had also been optimistic to think saying that Quatre couldn’t stay on the line forever because it would cost a fortune would dissuade them, because Quatre had just hung up and called him back, and Trowa had naturally answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t entirely clear what they were waiting for, because he wasn’t going to give it to them. Instead, he went about his day around them as they settled themselves in to wait, occasionally making small talk with Quatre, but mostly sat in silence as Quatre worked and Wufei settled in his armchair with a book and a pot of tea. He didn’t offer to make them any refreshments - they weren’t guests, they were squatters, and he wasn’t about to encourage them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had long gone dark, and Wufei had eaten his dinner - again, not offering any to Trowa and Heero, to which Trowa had responded by going to buy pizza and stinking up the place with the smell of cheese and meat, leaving Heero behind to stare implacably at Wufei until Trowa returned - before there was a knock at the door. There was something victorious in both of their expressions, and Quatre set aside the folder he had been working on and gave his full attention to the small viewscreen on the side table, sat so still he almost looked like a framed photograph.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei ignored them as he went to open the door and then quickly stepped out of the way as two figures stumbled through, leaning against each other, laughing, and loudly shushing each other. Duo and Oliver looked a little worse for the wear - Oliver particularly so, arm around Duo’s neck, face flushed and hair rumpled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They also appeared to have swapped clothes at some point, because Oliver was wearing Duo’s leather jacket and boots, with his battered jeans and black band t-shirt, whilst Duo was looking fairly smart in a shirt, v-neck jumper and well-cared-for brown suede jacket. Oliver took one look at Wufei, opened his mouth to talk, and started sniggering again, and Duo comically tried to shush him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why are you here?” Wufei asked, finally, when it was clear neither of them was going to offer any further information.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Didn’ want him to see my place,” Duo said, with a slight slur and clearly concentrating on forming the words. They must have had a lot to drink. “Hadn’t hidden all my shit. Was too risky.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you brought him here?” Wufei said dryly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, yeah,” Duo said, as though it was obvious. “Wasn’t ‘spectin’ you to be havin’ book club though,” he added, looking at Heero, Trowa, and Quatre’s little video screen with some distaste. Heero looked like he wanted to say something, a little startled by Duo’s expression. His eyes flicked to Oliver more than once, but he wasn’t sure where to start, and Trowa flanked him closely, like a supportive shadow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They weren’t invited,” Wufei said, a little more loudly than usual, making sure his point carried. “And they won’t leave.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo sighed irritably and straightened up a little - evidently he’d just been luxuriating in the feeling of being buzzed, and enjoying letting go of control a little, but faced with this apparent tag-team he was wrestling as much control as he could back from the alcohol haze. He decanted Oliver into Wufei’s arms.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He could do with some water,” he told Wufei, and Wufei privately thought he could do with a dowsing of the stuff, and possibly a liver transplant, but he wrangled the Irishman as best he could into his armchair and reappeared with a large glass of water, some paracetamol, and a warmed-up bowl of leftover rice and vegetables from his dinner to try and soak up some of the alcohol. Duo, meanwhile, had folded his arms and was squaring up against the other three.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s going on, Duo?” Trowa asked mildly. “Who’s this guy?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s Oliver,” Duo said. “He’s the solicitor workin’ with Wufei on the Hernandez case.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And he just happens to look just like you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Over in the armchair, Oliver started singing, a surprisingly melodic baritone, if a little pitchy in places, as he slurred his way through a few lines of ‘He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother’ dissolving into snorty giggles and spilling water down his front.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You told Wufei, but not us?” Heero asked, clearly a little nettled by that point. He and Duo had been inseparable at one point, and still often acted as points to each other. Wufei had been jealous, until he’d realised that Heero accepted their relationship at face value, wasn’t good at reading further into Duo’s expressions. As far as Heero was concerned, Duo never told a lie, so he never questioned the veracity of the man’s tone, or smile, or laugh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t tell Wufei nothin’,” Duo snapped. “Wufei found him, told </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span> ‘bout him. That’s all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You didn’t know about him before?” Quatre’s tone was gentle, trying to coax a response out of a wounded animal. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, sure I did. I had a whole family I wasn’t tellin’ ya about, just lettin’ y’all think I was a sad orphan ‘cause of all the street cred it got me.” The derision on Duo’s face was sour as lemons. “I ain’t actually been workin’, just goin’ on family holidays. Fuck you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And he just turns up, now? Out of nowhere? The odds of that are impossible.” Heero shook his head in distaste. “Have you considered that he’s not related to you at all, that he’s been made to look like you, as a way of getting close to you? You have plenty of enemies.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh yeah, we got a real spy on our hands over there.” Duo rolled his eyes and gestured to where Oliver was blowing bubbles into his glass. “We’re waitin’ on a DNA test from Sally, but let’s be real guys, it ain’t gonna bring any surprises.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This was unexpected, Wufei thought, absently reaching out to tilt Oliver’s glass so he had to actually drink the contents instead of just blow raspberries into it. Either today had worked better than anyone could have possibly imagined, or Duo was simply being contrary because he was pissed off at Trowa and Heero. Whatever the reason, he seemed to be accepting Oliver as his brother, which was a big first hurdle cleared.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Quatre sighed, the sound tinny over the feeble speakers of Wufei’s phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well then,” he said, “I suppose we had better accept him as such. Maybe you should bring Oliver over to mine, we can get to know him?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No thanks,” Duo said quickly. “We’re maybe at the Christmas card stage, not the family dinner stage yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve swapped clothes with each other,” Trowa pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, well, that was a dare,” Duo muttered, and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Don’t mean nothin’.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now that we’re all satisfied, can I get my apartment back to myself?” Wufei asked icily. “I had plans today.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No you didn’t,” Trowa said, but picked up his jacket all the same, and handed Heero his. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll let you know when I’ve got a clear spot in my diary,” Quatre said, as if Duo hadn’t told him ‘no’ thirty seconds before. “We can have everyone over to dinner. It will be good to get to know Oliver more. Thank you for letting me tie up your phone line, Wufei.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As if I had a choice,” Wufei said, but Quatre had said his goodbyes and hung up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re going to have to explain this to Sally too, you know,” Trowa said, as Heero shrugged into his jacket. “She was swearing something fierce after you left yesterday.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let us know what the test results say,” Heero ordered - didn’t ask, Wufei noted, ordered, assuming that he knew the best for the safety of the group. He didn’t consider himself leader, Wufei knew, Heero was perfectly willing to let Quatre take the driving seat in that respect, but when it came to the security of the group, of the five of them, Heero took charge. Not that each of them wasn’t paranoid enough on their own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But perhaps this was what Duo needed - Heero’s mistrust of Oliver seemed to mollify him a little, taking the edge off his glower. The others weren’t going to immediately drop Duo in favour of Oliver. They saw Oliver as a potential threat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei ushered them out the door and shut it behind them, turning to the two remaining interlopers in his space, Duo leaning against the back of the couch and staring thoughtfully at his feet, whilst Oliver had polished off his water and rice and was slumped in the chair, head lolling and eyes drooping.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Had fun, then?” he asked dryly, approaching Duo, who gave a reluctant half-smile and looked over at his brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, actually,” Duo said, sounding quietly surprised himself. “He’s alright.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was a start, Wufei thought, admiring the expression on Duo’s face - cautiously hopeful, a little pleased, a little amazed. A very promising start.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I can't believe that I forgot to thank kangofu_cb in my last notes, for beta-reading this even though she's not in GW any more, and also for holding my hand every time I had a meltdown over this fic for the last two or so years. </p><p>And thank you to everyone who has commented so far, and who commented and left kudos on my other fics over the last couple of years. It was always extremely appreciated and every one made my day. I'm so delighted you seem to like Oliver so far, and I hope you enjoy the rest of this fic too.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Three.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Somehow it had been agreed that Duo and Oliver would stay at Wufei’s that night, after Wufei went to get another glass of water and came back to find Oliver being deposited in the spare room after Duo had stripped off all but his socks and underwear, and pushed the waste paper can near the bed. And then Duo had stripped down to his own underwear and sprawled out on the couch, and Wufei had needed to go get a blanket for him for the sake of his own sanity.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oliver didn’t say anything about all those when you swapped clothes?” Wufei asked, gesturing at the network of scars on Duo’s body as he passed the blanket over. Duo chuckled, deep and rich.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think he could see anythin’ clearly by the time we thought swappin’ clothes would be a good idea,” Duo said, shaking the blanket out and then wriggling under it until only his face above the nose remained visible. “Thanks for lettin’ us crash here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter,” Wufei said dryly, a sentiment which seemed to have been the theme of his day, before heading into his own room. He sat on the edge of the bed with the lamp on and took several deep, slow breaths - in through his nose, hold, out through his mouth. He wouldn’t get any sleep if he spent the whole night thinking that there was not one but two mostly-naked Duos in his apartment. Even if Oliver wasn’t Duo, his libido hadn’t seemed to want to differentiate, as bare skin had been exposed before he had been bundled under the duvet. He was fairly confident his subconscious wouldn’t either, if he didn’t fully clear his mind before he slept. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It didn’t help that he knew Duo made poor decisions when he was really drunk, and remembering the last time he’d been faced with that, Wufei wasn’t sure this time he’d do such a good job of steering him back in the right direction.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took a long while of careful meditation, careful and persistent repetition of lessons learned by rote years ago, but Wufei managed to sink into a dreamless repose, and actually woke the next morning feeling fairly refreshed. Heading out into living area, the smell of coffee from the kitchen hit him, and following it he found Duo lounging at the rickety table in one of the cheap, wooden chairs, drinking a mug of black coffee from the cafetiere in front of him - thankfully dressed, in his own clothes. He raised the coffee in salute as Wufei approached.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s plenty if you want some,” Duo said, his voice an undertone, but carrying easily in the silence of the apartment.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tempting, but I think I lack the constitution for the sort of coffee you make.” Instead he moved to the cupboard and took down his teapot and can of tea leaves, carefully spooning a measure into the pot and refilling the kettle, setting the temperature to slightly below a boil. “How did you sleep?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not bad considerin’ you’ve done everything to make your sofa as uncomfortable as possible to stop people from hangin’ around too long,” Duo drawled, although there was a faint curl to his lips. The kettle rumbled its way to temp and the water was poured neatly into the pot. Cup, strainer and pot gathered, Wufei settled himself into the other chair, placing his accoutrements on the surface at right angles with each other. Duo snorted softly, watching him arrange the items to the millimetre, and Wufei glanced up at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked, and the other man shrugged a lazy shoulder.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. I’ve had heavier nights.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I meant about Oliver.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo opened his mouth to give a glib reply, and then paused, closed it, and sighed. He set his mug on the table and wrapped his palms around it, drumming his fingernails against the ceramic.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I dunno, man,” he said, finally. “He seems like a decent guy but, it’s… weird, when you think about it? Like. He’s s’posed to be family - an’ twins, they’re s’posed to have some kinda ESP connection? But he’s a complete stranger. And there’s just… nothin’ there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing?” Wufei balanced the strainer over his cup and began to carefully pour the tea.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, like. It’s not like I ever felt I was missin’ anything, y’know? S’not like I suddenly feel like I found my lost arm or somethin’. And,” Duo continued, finding his flow, running a frustrated hand through his bangs, “I dunno what he expects? He keeps goin’ on about meeting the rest of his family and he’s clearly got… </span>
  <em>
    <span>ideas</span>
  </em>
  <span> ‘bout what family is, but I dunno shit. I don’t know him, I don’t know his people. I’ve spent less than 48 hours with the guy in total, he could be anyone. Heero’s paranoid ass could even be right, I dunno.” He shrugged again, this one spiky and a little defensive. “I just… he’s clearly real tight with his family, an’ I don’t see how I’m ever gonna have the sort of relationship with him that he’d want. I’m never gonna be as tight with him as I am with you, or the others, y’know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The tea steamed in Wufei’s cup, a clear green liquid. He lifted it with both hands, taking a moment to inhale the fragrance, enjoying the warmth on his face. Closing his eyes, he took a second to savour the peace - a warm drink in his hands, a warm body beside him at the table, companionship which was sorely lacking in general in his life.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You cannot force intimacy,” he said, after taking a careful sip. “It can only come from shared time, shared experiences, and shared temperaments.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, ‘cause you and me are so similar in temperament,” Duo chuckled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We have… complementary temperaments,” Wufei said, choosing his words carefully. “As with all five of us, we were picked for strengths that would make us stronger together than apart - we’re a manufactured unit, to give a vulgar spin on our origins. Family cannot be designed in such a way, and without commonality of time or experience you’re little more than strangers bound by blood.” He took a further sip, to arrange his next words. “With no shared past, you cannot have existing intimacy. If you wish, you can work towards a future relationship, but you’ll need to set the terms yourself, rather than using preconceived notions of what family should look like. Those rely on the traditional family experience - without that, they’re irrelevant.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a long silence whilst Duo turned his mug around in his hands, before he looked up at Wufei through his bangs and gave him a crooked, grateful smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll build your own bonds in your own time,” Wufei reassured him. “Although I think you’re wise focusing on just the two of you for now. Extended family will only add further complications at this stage.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No shit,” Duo muttered, “you know he’s got </span>
  <em>
    <span>fifteen</span>
  </em>
  <span> cousins?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Only fifteen?” Wufei asked mildly, hiding a small smirk behind his cup. “I’m surprised it’s not more.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before Duo could do more than gently kick at his foot in response, the door to the spare room opened and Oliver shuffled into view, clinging to the door frame for balance. He squinted in the light and made a quiet, timid groaning noise. His jumper was on inside-out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He wakes,” Wufei observed quietly, and Duo sniggered into his mug. The sound was enough to draw Oliver’s gaze and he blinked across the room at them, before his brain caught up with what he was seeing and he relaxed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ah thank God,” he breathed, and he began to pick his way carefully across the room towards them. Wufei slid out of his chair to make room for him, and retrieved another mug as he did so, which Duo obligingly filled and passed to his brother as the Irishman slumped into the newly-vacated seat. Wufei also provided a glass of water and a pack of aspirin. “I’ve got no memory of getting here,” Oliver confessed, voice raspy, taking the coffee with thanks, and palming two aspirin before taking a generous mouthful. “Was worried I’d just let myself into someone else’s place and made myself at home. Used to do that all the time at Uni. Cait used to go spare.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s a dangerous habit,” Wufei said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So’s drinkin’ with you guys,” Oliver shot back, and even Duo managed a deep chuckle at that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It took a bit of time, a shower, and a pair of old plastic sunglasses which had somehow ended up in Wufei’s car - probably from the previous owner, because Wufei had never owned sunglasses like that - before they were able to get Oliver out into the bright, sunny morning. Even then he winced like a vampire being forced into daylight, but sheepishly crawled into the back seat of the car, slouching down low with a feeble groan as Duo hopped into the front passenger seat. He glanced back at his brother, and then shot Wufei a conspiratorial grin before slamming the door behind him somewhat harder than he needed to. The car rocked with the force of it, and the noise Oliver made in response was pitiful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There are laws against torture,” Wufei said, closing his door a little more gently, but he couldn’t quite suppress his own grin.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Twenty minutes later, Duo leaned against the car whilst Oliver creaked his way out of the seat, pausing with his legs swung out the door to rest his head in his hands, as they were parked alongside the hotel. Wufei paused to retrieve a bottle of water from the trunk, and came round the car to pass it to Oliver.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh goody,” Oliver rasped, “a souvenir.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Mid-morning meant the streets were starting to get busy with crowds of families heading into town, to children’s hobbies, about their business together. So Wufei didn’t flinch when he heard a high pitched shriek of “Daddy!!” from somewhere behind him. Nor did he think anything of the rumble of little feet drawing nearer, until Duo suddenly stiffened beside him, his whole body going tense and his eyes widening in alarm as the blood drained out of his face. Wufei’s own instincts reacted in kind, and he spun on the spot to see two small figures fling themselves at Duo, arms wrapping around his waist, childish voices reaching the pitches and speeds only the very young can attain. Duo had frozen, his complexion now fast approaching grey, and further back along the street a tall woman was hurrying towards them, a look of increasing confusion and concern on her face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Da, are you surprised to see us? Mam said we couldn’t tell!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Da, look, my tooth’s gone wobbly!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why are you dressed so funny?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why’s your hair all weird?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Under their masses of thick, curly hair, the children were babbling a mile a minute, trying to catch Duo up with the news from their week, hands tugging at his arms and trying to get him to bend down and cuddle them or pay them attention.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It felt like hours before Oliver reacted, but for a normal person with a severe hangover the speed at which he leapt to his feet was probably impressive. The lilting accents of his children’s voices pierced the fugue state his mind was in, and he started, scrambling to his feet. The water bottle fell to the floor, sunglasses were fumbled off his face, and - aside from one stumble where he had to steady himself on the open door - he made it to the children at the same time as the woman, each of them grabbing a child with the practiced ease of teamwork. The two kids looked suddenly panicked and unsure at the urgency, confused and surprised, looking between their mother, their father and Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niamh, Joe, I’m here,” Oliver said, his voice soothing and calm, as he winced and squinted at them. “It’s grand to see you, when did you get here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We just arrived,” said the woman, her voice a little frosty. She was tall and elegant, wearing a crisp white blouse, a knee length skirt, her thick, dark, curly hair framing her face like a halo. She didn’t look happy, and her grip on the little boy’s shoulder firm and her jaw tight. “We thought we’d see where Daddy was holed up and working hard. Maybe go out for ice cream. I can see that you’ve been working hard at something.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s great of you to come see me.” Oliver stood up and closed the distance between him and his wife, although she fell back a step, eyes shooting to Duo as she did so. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The four of them together made a pretty picture alright. Both parents tall and attractive, the children a blend of the two of them. Even if Oliver was looking hungover and tense, and his wife was looking confused and concerned.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Scuse me,” Duo muttered, his voice tight, and he pushed away from the car and strode quickly around the corner. Wufei hesitated for a moment, before deciding that Oliver and his family needed some time alone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He found Duo in the service alley round the back of the hotel, bent over, hand braced on the wall as he spat down the drain. The drain with some evidence of vomit around it. Breathing heavily and deeply through his nose, Duo wiped his mouth on the back of his hand, pausing with it pressed against his lips for a moment and stared at the drain as if he could see the answers through the grate. Wufei trod carefully as he drew closer, making enough noise to alert Duo to his presence, but the other man didn’t move. Even in the shaded alleyway, Wufei could see how pale and clammy his skin was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Carrots, man,” Duo rasped, laughing weakly. “Why’re there always carrots?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t respond, knowing that the joke was a lame attempt at deflection at best. Instead, he took up position beside Duo, but a discreet distance from the drain grate, and leant his back against the cool bricks of the wall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even when they’d been locked in a cell to suffocate to death, Duo hadn’t looked this rattled. He’d played it all off with laughs and melodrama. This man laughed in the face of death, lorded over chaos, and kept a steady hand with a gun to his head. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei knew Duo had never feared dying. It was being left behind he couldn't handle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re like a catalogue family,” he said, finally. “They could be the picture that comes when you buy a frame.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” Wufei mused. “I think he’s - what’s the phrase? Batting above his weight a little.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a beat, Duo looked at Wufei in surprise, then let out a rough chuckle. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” he agreed, and wiped his mouth again with a shaking hand as he stood up, turning to lean against the wall beside Wufei, the trembles which come with vomiting still vibrating through his body. “We all know I’m the pretty twin.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You definitely will be when your sister-in-law finishes with him,” Wufei drawled, remembering the look on the woman’s face, and the long, shiny nails on her fingers, painted a delicate pink. She could definitely do some damage with those.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“...Should we go rescue him, d’you think?” Duo asked after a moment, sounding unsure. Whether it was about going back or the prospect of a sister-in-law, Wufei couldn’t tell. He glanced at his watch instead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Perhaps we’ll allow them a few more minutes,” he said. “I have no desire to get in the middle of that in full swing.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo nodded jerkily and began to pick at the rough skin over the callouses on his palm. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They called me ‘Da’,” he said quietly. “An’ they kinda look like me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t really see,” Wufei told him honestly. “I was more worried about you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’ve got my eyes, and my mouth.” Duo licked his lips like his mouth had gone dry. “I just. I never thought I’d look like anyone, y’know? The back end of things had been cleared out, and I never thought I’d be contributin’ to the next generation…” Deep, shaky breath in through his nose, nostrils flaring as he tried to let it out again slowly. “All together, they look like a real fuckin’ family, don’t they? Like, the </span>
  <em>
    <span>real</span>
  </em>
  <span> kind.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“...Yes.” Wufei sighed and he felt it somewhere deep inside himself too. Even since the war, even since peace had started, none of them had been particularly exposed to the lives of the people they’d fought to protect. All five of the gundam pilots had found themselves bunching closer together and using each other as a barrier to the softer side of peace. Work colleagues, career focus, that was fine. They could deal with adults, out of the home, informally and formally. But children, families, the deeper, gentler bonds? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Those were beyond their reach.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” Duo said, summing up the situation in his inimitable way, hands falling to his sides and head dropping back to rest against the wall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” Wufei agreed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They stood a moment longer, Duo staring at the sky, Wufei frowning at his feet, contemplating in silence exactly what had happened, exactly what it had meant.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Should… d’you think we should head back?” Duo’s voice was hesitant. He wasn’t sure he wanted to go back. Wufei didn’t know the answer, his experience with family - whilst somewhat more detailed than Duo’s - didn’t exactly cover this sort of situation. He wasn’t sure anyone’s did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I left the car unlocked, so it would probably be wise.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo nodded tightly, but it was still a count of at least thirty before he pushed away from the wall and trailed behind Wufei back towards the parking lot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The open back door had been shut, and through the windows it looked like the two children were sitting inside, playing games on what were probably their parents’ phones, whilst Oliver and his wife had a conversation in intense undertones, backs to the car so the kids wouldn’t see the frustration on their faces. But their voices carried enough for Wufei to hear them as he drew up behind them, and Duo too probably.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“- don’t seem right, there’s something about them. Who are they?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re Preventers! You’ve not spoken two words to them, you don’t know what they’re like.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve worked with Preventers too, Oliver, and none of them were… I don’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>need</span>
  </em>
  <span> to speak to them, the looks on their faces when the kids ran up, their body language! They’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>dangerous, </span>
  </em>
  <span>I can feel it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t know that, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> don’t know that! I’ve not even known them a week -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But you’re just going to accept him as your brother?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve seen him, I don’t exactly have a choice do I? What’m I gonna do? Sorry we’ve got the same face but I’m gonna reject your application for familial recognition? Be realistic -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Glancing sideways at Duo, Wufei saw the brief flinch before the smiling mask was pasted on and he cleared his throat before walking around the car, holding his hand out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sorry ‘bout that, I wasn’t feelin’ too great - guess that’s from keepin’ up with Oliver here.” He took his sister-in-law’s hand with delicate dexterity, and shook it warmly - a two handed grip that wasn’t too firm, Wufei could see. Just like a politician. “It’s great to meet you - Cait, right? Oliver’s told us ‘bout you already, but he clearly undersold things.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I - yes,” Cait said, looking unsure about the sudden tall, long-haired man in her space, glancing back to the car where the kids were playing. “Caitlin. You’re… Duo?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, that’s me! Duo Maxwell. I may run and hide, but I never tell a lie. I got that on my business cards. You’ve got two beautiful kids there. Guess the looks come from your side of the family.” Duo didn’t pause to let Caitlin get another word in, even as he dropped her hands, winked at the kids in the car, and clapped Oliver hard on the shoulder. “Sorry that I got sprung on you like this too, Oliver wanted to break it to you, but I wanted the final rubber stamp on it before we told everyone - the tests should come back on Monday whether we’re family or just a twofer deal before God broke the mould. If I’d known you were comin’, of course I wouldn’t’a dragged him out drinking yesterday either. You know how it is, ya live alone, ya don’t get much clue fer planning around anyone else, ain’t that right Wufei?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You certainly ensure I never have a chance to make plans,” Wufei said dryly, stepping aside as the car door swung open and the two kids scrambled out. He didn’t miss how Cait cautiously grabbed their hands to stop them surging forward into Duo’s space. He was certain Duo didn’t either, but the other man just ruffled their hair, and grinned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Guess we’ll hafta catch up another time, we’ll let you get on with your day. It was great to meet you Ca- </span>
  <em>
    <span>Caitlin</span>
  </em>
  <span>. See ya later, Oliver.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver managed to sketch them a bemused, slightly stunned wave as Duo slid into the front passenger seat, and Wufei took his cue to slip in the driver’s side, starting the engine whilst Duo waggled his fingers and stuck his tongue out at the kids as they pulled away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once they were on the road, Duo let out a heavy sigh and his eyes slid closed, sagging back into the seat. He was silent for a long moment as the tension bled out of his body, making him seem a little smaller, deflated. Vulnerable, just for a second, before he puffed himself up again, found his internal resolve once more.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Take me to a bar, Wufei,” he demanded. “I think I need some more drinks.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For once, Wufei was inclined to agree. He felt like he needed a few more drinks too, and he hadn’t been the one with the children running to him. Just the concept of it was more than he could even process. No wonder Duo had been sick.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Drinks,” Wufei agreed. “Excellent idea.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You will be shocked - </span>
  <em>
    <span>shocked</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Sally repeated, with added emphasis, “and </span>
  <em>
    <span>stunned</span>
  </em>
  <span> to hear the results of the tests. It’s a good thing you’re both sitting down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Perched next to Oliver on the examination table, Duo rolled his eyes. He usually appreciated Sally’s humour. It usually wasn’t aimed at him. He’d learned how to position himself to be on the right side of it when he was 16. Still, the lack of reaction wasn’t stopping her as she picked up her clipboard and mimed going through it with elaborate detail.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You really won’t believe this but it </span>
  <em>
    <span>seems</span>
  </em>
  <span> that you two - against all odds and expectations - are actually,” she paused for dramatic emphasis, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>related</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver snorted and stood, Duo close behind as they crossed the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, boys, I realise this must come as a hell of a surprise to you both, so just take a minute to absorb it and consider what you’re going to do next. This isn’t an easy piece of news to take, and obviously it’s come </span>
  <em>
    <span>completely</span>
  </em>
  <span> out of the blue-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The door swung shut on her as they stepped into the corridor, cutting off whatever she was going to say, but Duo could just about hear her saying “Thank you, Sally, you’re welcome, Duo, always a pleasure,” to herself in a snide tone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver sighed to himself, doing up the buttons on his suit jacket, and Duo wondered - hoped - he would just say his goodbyes and head off. They hadn’t spoken since they’d parted the day before, and he didn’t really want to think about it any more. It had been an unpleasant experience all round and he wanted to just move on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“About yesterday…” Oliver began, and Duo suppressed his own sigh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look man, it’s no big deal. I’m sorry I got you into that state - ”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry about Cait.” Oliver cut across Duo, seeming like he needed to get his words out before they got too stuck in his throat. “I… I hope you don’t mind, I told her a little bit about your background, and she feels like a total prat now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She really doesn’t need to,” Duo said, trying to get out of this conversation - and feeling thankful he hadn’t told Oliver more about his past, since apparently it would have been passed along blithely to his wife as though it was her business too.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just. I know we wanted to take it slow with the rest of the family -” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Your family</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Duo thought, but kept it to himself, “but I’d also really like for you and Cait to start on the right foot when… when things settle down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look, man.” Duo rubbed the end of his nose, and looked up and down the corridor in the hopes that maybe Une would appear and have him escorted from the building, since he wasn’t supposed to be there. “It’s no biggie. It’s all cool.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Cait wants you to come to ours this weekend,” Oliver said, “and I think it would be a good idea. Give her a chance to feel like she’s… mended some bridges. Then we can back off again after that, she’ll feel better, you’ll feel better…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He absolutely would not feel better, Duo thought, alarm bells blaring in his head. There was no way in hell he was ready for a family dinner with the Picture Perfect family, whilst he had to watch his own Freaky Friday live this completely alien life right in front of him. No, no way.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think I’m quite ready for one-on-one time…” he began. “I ain’t had time to work on my manners, and I never know what gift to bring for dinner.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It won’t be one-on-one,” Oliver said, in what was evidently an attempt to reassure Duo but which, again, had exactly the opposite effect. “We’re having a little party, a barbecue. Got some friends coming round - it’s dead informal, really chill.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But Duo would then not just be meeting the family, but all Oliver’s friends. Nope. He was used to being up against the odds in worse situations, but he was a hundred percent certain the skills weren’t transferable. Except perhaps for slipping out unnoticed when all hell broke loose.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I really don’t think that’s a great idea,” he said finally, glancing up and down the hallway again and hoping to make an escape. “I ain’t really ‘family friendly’, and I’m not great with people…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? Everyone I’ve spoken to seems to love you-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘Cept your wife.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but that’s why - what are you looking for?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Called out, Duo looked guiltily back at Oliver and smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look, I ain’t really s’posed to be here, so if we could maybe pick this up later…?” He began to walk backwards down the corridor towards the door to the stairwell, but to his dismay Oliver followed him, continuing to press his argument. Fucking lawyers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can give you a lift over if it’s transport you’re worried about - that might be better, we’d get there early and you could get to know Cait a bit better while we’re setting up.” Oliver managed to keep pace with Duo as he trotted down the stairs, and he suddenly knew exactly how the others must have felt when he pestered them over the years. Guess persistence was nature, not nurture.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I really don’t think that’s a great idea,” Duo shut that thread down as quickly as he could, grabbing the handrail and using it to boost himself down a few steps in a jump, gaining some distance between the two of them, hoping the physical gap might give him a bit of space to think a little further. Why couldn’t he come up with a concrete reason not to go? Damn personal principles. Damn long lost twins. “Look, just ask Wufei, he’ll tell you I’m not fit for polite company. He’s got loads’a stories sayin’ exactly that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What if Wufei came with you?” Oliver reached out to grab Duo’s sleeve, fingers just brushing across aged leather as he dodged out of the way instinctively. “Would that make it easier?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Buddy, if you can get Wufei to go then sure, I’ll be there,” Duo scoffed. “But he’s even less social than me. You ain’t got a chance in hell of getting him to agree.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Perhaps that was setting himself up for a fall, but Duo had faith. If there was one thing in this world he could rely on, it was that Wufei was never going to be up for going to a stranger’s barbecue.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Four</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“It’s going to be a long day if you don’t speak to me. And rather negates the point of my joining you in the first place.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t talk to traitors.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei glanced across to where Duo was slouched in the front passenger seat, elbow out the window, chin propped on his fist, watching as the scenery sped by. In all honesty, Wufei hadn’t initially realised what he was agreeing to, when Oliver had invited him to this family barbecue. He hadn’t really been listening, focused instead on the files they had been working through, and made a non-committal noise that was taken to be assent, by which point he couldn’t think of a way to extricate himself from the engagement. It was only on later reflection that he realised that this was probably a good opportunity for Duo, but he would probably want support. He hadn’t realised that Duo hadn’t already agreed to go, that he’d been banking on Wufei refusing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>By that point it would have been rude to back out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo disagreed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I feel that you’re not approaching this with the right attitude.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I feel like you can bite me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Taking a deep breath, Wufei reminded himself that this wasn’t Duo. This was the post-mission tension still talking. If he hadn’t wanted to be there, he wouldn’t have got in the car when Wufei showed up that morning. He wouldn’t have been there for Wufei to find. Somewhere, underneath all his prickliness, Duo </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> trying. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We don’t have to stay long,” he said, finally. “With any luck there’ll be enough people there we can just show our faces for a bit and then leave without anyone noticing."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They pulled off the snelweg and down onto the normal country roads. The houses they passed were huge, all modern and unique, with long driveways and what looked like sprawling gardens behind. Duo sat up from his slump and looked at them, clearly doing some calculations in his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They don’t live down here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They’re both lawyers,” Wufei said, checking the GPS to confirm they were on the right route. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Jesus, ‘Fei, what did you get us into?” Duo’s leg started jiggling, restless and anxious. “I ain’t dressed fer a party in this sorta neighbourhood.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In one of his smarter band t-shirts, black jeans and black boots, Duo had clearly put some effort in – he hadn’t just thrown on his scruffiest clothes out of spite, and he tended to save his smart clothes for court appearances or some of his jobs. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re fine,” Wufei reassured him, although he was beginning to feel underdressed himself as the houses rolled by, and he was in chinos and a button-down. “They said it was a casual barbecue with friends, no-one’s expecting you to be formal.” At least, he sincerely hoped they weren’t. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He pulled off the road and onto a long, wide driveway, sliding into the space beside the two cars already there – a smart saloon and a larger family car – but it didn’t look like anyone else was there yet. Turning the engine off, he sat for a moment, and took a deep breath before looking across at Duo. The other man was looking a little grey around the edges, but seemed to relax a little when he met Wufei’s eyes. He reached down into the footwell between his legs and picked up the bottle of wine they’d brought, as Wufei leaned around to pick up the large bouquet from the back seat, and then, in unison, they clambered out of the car. Wufei passed the flowers to Duo – after the previous meeting, it seemed best that the gifts come from him, and they made their way up to the front door. Wufei knocked, firmly, and then there came a rumbling like some kind of thunder. The door was flung open, and four small bodies barged their way past with shrieks of laughter, tumbling out onto the drive.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver was a few steps behind them, smiling weakly as he got nearer.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We said the kids could have a friend each over for the day,” he offered, by way of explanation. “They got here early.” He waved them inside, closing the door behind them, then shuffled past to lead the way down the long, airy corridor to the bright room at the far end, which coalesced into the kitchen as they drew nearer. The back wall of the kitchen was entirely glazed, bifolding doors pushed wide open to let in the warm air and give clear thoroughfare between the large kitchen and the garden, which stretched beyond a generous patio, until it reached what looked to be a canal at the end. There was a barbecue set up on the flagstones, and plenty of chairs dotted around. The counter beside the fridge was covered in all sorts of bottles waiting to be opened, and another counter had plastic-wrapped trays covered in meat, bowls of salad, and baskets of bread all piled out ready to be served. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess… this is gonna be a big party?” Duo said slowly, shooting a glance at Wufei that said how clearly unhappy he was with this turn of events, and that he was holding Wufei entirely responsible for it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just a few friends and their partners, few more kids.” Oliver checked his watch, then seemed to relax a little. “We’re on time actually, I think. People should be here soon.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is there anything we can help with?” Wufei offered, but Oliver waved him off as Caitlin came in from the garden, looking summery in a floral dress, to complement Oliver’s chinos and shirt, not unlike Wufei’s own. Out of the corner of his eye, Wufei saw Duo tug on the hem of his t-shirt and hoped that maybe some of the other guests would be slightly more relaxed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You made it!” Caitlin said, and whilst she was smiling there was a definite note of uncertainty in her voice. Duo held out the flowers and wine to her almost robotically, and she did look startled but took them with a gracious nod, and delved into a cupboard to find a vase.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>An uncomfortable silence settled as Caitlin busied herself trimming the stems on the bouquet. Duo stuffed his hands in his jean pockets, whilst Oliver rubbed his together as though trying to brush off dust. Wufei fought the urge to check his watch, and ask how long it would take for everyone else to arrive, so he and Duo could disappear into the background a little.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, uh,” Duo began, “your friends, did you… tell them about…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Oliver said quickly. “Yeah, we gave them a wee rundown, just so’s it wouldn’t be a shock when they got here, make things less awkward, y’know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, that’s great,” Duo said, and Wufei couldn’t tell if he meant it or not. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Silence fell again. Caitlin seemed to be taking an inordinate amount of time to strip the leaves and trim the stems on her flowers, placing each one with what must be exaggerated care into the vase, rearranging everything each time. Duo watched her, clearly aware of it, whilst Oliver bounced on the balls of his feet and glanced around the room looking for something to spark conversation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I get anyone a drink?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was interrupted by the clatter of feet again, and two of the children who had barrelled out the front door earlier appeared through the back doors. Their eyes were wide and they looked a little panicked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We didn’t mean to do it!” the boy, Joe, Duo’s nephew, said quickly, before anything else could be said, clearly half expecting the little girl next to him to dob him in for whatever perceived crime had been committed. “It was an accident!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s your sister?” Cait asked immediately, turning to face them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Joe and Billy locked Niamh in the car!” the little blonde girl said, pointing at Joe with some vigour. “She’s stuck!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>dare</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Joe said defensively. “She didn’t have to get in the boot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>You</span>
  </em>
  <span> said that if she didn’t then she’d be a Poo-head.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well where are the keys?” Oliver asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In the boot with her. She said she can’t find them. She’s shouting a lot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ah, Jesus,” Oliver muttered, and jogged back up the hallway and out of the front door, Caitlin on his heels and Duo and Wufei trailing behind with the kids. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Outside on the drive, Billy was standing by the car looking terrified, whilst muffled banging and shouting came from the back of the silver saloon car. It was starting to sound a little panicked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Niamh, chicken, it’s Mam,” Cait said, pushing past Oliver to tap on the trunk of the car, then reaching around to try and pull the doors open, but they didn’t budge. “Can you reach the keys?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No I can’t see them,” came Niamh’s teary-sounding reply. “It’s too dark in here and I can’t feel them. Let me out!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll call the recovery company,” Oliver said, fumbling his phone out of his pocket. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They won’t be here for at least an hour!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is there a spare key?” Wufei asked, raising his voice a little to be heard over the resumed banging.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s second hand, didn’t come with a spare.” Oliver sounded stressed. “The boot locks separately from the rest of the car, and they’re all electric so it’s not like we can jimmy the lock. You can’t open the boot without the key, or using the button in the front. But if the doors are locked, we can’t get in unless…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unless you’ve got the key,” Wufei finished, sharing a look with Duo. The other man was clearly not enjoying hearing the kid shouting, and was clearly torn about what to do about it, a little pale. Wufei himself was listening to the shouts about how dark and small it was and thinking back to that airless cell on the Lunar Base, he wondered if Duo was too, remembering all the small, dark places he’d been trapped, all the fears that had come with it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niamh’s shouts started to get panicky.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Please let me out, I can’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>breathe</span>
  </em>
  <span>-!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re working on it, chick,” Cait called, “just calm down.” And then, over her shoulder, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Do something</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We could smash the window?” Oliver suggested, but he didn’t sound keen on the idea.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo stepped forward and put his hand on Cait’s shoulder, the question obvious - </span>
  <em>
    <span>May I?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Caitlin looked unsure, glanced over at Oliver and Wufei who both nodded, and then she nodded. Duo rapped on the boot once, firmly, and Niamh went quiet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, kid, my name’s Duo. We met last week, do you remember?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Y-yes…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m gonna get you outta here but I need your help, okay?” Wufei couldn’t hear the response, but Duo nodded. “Ok, I can see there’s an arm rest on the back seat - does this car have a little hatch behind it, so that you can stuff things in the trunk when you’re driving? You should be able to open that from your side - if you roll over and face the back of the trunk can you find it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was silence for a moment, Duo straightened up and peered into the back seat, then a small grin tugged at his lips.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey there, I can see you! Can you breathe a bit better now? Gettin’ a bit of light in? Ok, my turn now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He pulled out his phone and his wallet, slipping something no bigger than a credit card out and sticking it to the car window. Pressing it, a little digital display turned up, with two red lights. Bringing a programme up on his phone, the light on the left went green. Tapping quickly at it, it wasn’t long before the light on the right flashed green and he reached forward to open the car door, slipping the device off the window and back into his pocket as he slid inside, half in and half out of the car.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He pressed at the release button for the trunk but nothing happened. Without the battery on, the button wasn’t working. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sorry ‘bout this in advance,” Duo called to Oliver, before reaching under the cuff of his jeans to slip out the knife he had in his boot. By this stage, Caitlin and the three children had moved round from the back of the car to see what he was doing, and they all jumped slightly as he deftly flicked the blade out and began to work it into the seam of plastic underneath the steering wheel, prising it off neatly and pulling out the wires behind it. He kept turning his head and talking quietly, Wufei guessed it was to Niamh in the back, but he had a little smile as he did it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He looked more relaxed breaking into this car than he had since they’d left that morning. A glance across at Cait and Oliver suggested that perhaps the feeling wasn’t entirely mutual, relief at the prospect of getting their daughter out of the car warring with the surprise and concern that Duo could so easily boost their Volvo. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The engine revved to life, and Duo hit the button on the dash, causing the trunk to pop open. Niamh scrambled out quickly and ran to meet Caitlin who wrapped her in the hug of a relieved mother who has had to listen to her child’s fear and been unable to do anything about it. Oliver had the foresight to look for the key in the now empty trunk before shutting it and turning on the two small boys to deliver what would probably the ticking-off of the year. Wufei instead made his way to Duo as he tried to tuck the wires back and close the paneling over it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good work.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo glanced up at him and gave a crooked grin, although it faded when he looked past Wufei to where Caitlin was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, we’ll see,” he said. “But at least I didn’t smash the window. If I had my stuff I’d be able to close all this up too an’... Hey, kid, how you doin’? You were great back there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Niamh had trotted up beside Wufei and stood, arms behind her back and looking bashfully at Duo, as if she’d never seen anyone so cool in her entire life and wasn’t quite sure how to speak to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you for rescuing me, Uncle Duo,” she said quickly, and then ran off as fast as she could, giggling as her little friend fell into step beside her. Duo watched her go, a slightly stunned expression on his face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on, Uncle Duo,” Wufei held his hand out to tug the other man from the car. “Let’s go get that drink before everyone else gets here.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The fruit punch had been just the treat for the sunny day, and they had found a quiet spot at the end of the garden, in the shade of the tree, watching the sluggish waters of the canal roll by, light glinting off the ripples.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I couldn't live here,” Duo said. “This is just such an invitation for anyone to sail up an’ steal my stuff. Don't even have the noise of a car engine to mask, could row up in complete silence an’ make yourself at home. No-one would see you 'cause you're not on the road. It’s the perfect target.” He leaned over slightly, glancing up and down the thin path. “You could do this whole street, no problem.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you went on a spree like that you'd need a big rowing boat to hold it all.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I'd get a punt barge.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Draining the last of his punch, Wufei turned to ponder the length of the garden and the house.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you lived here,” he said reflectively, “this bottom half of the garden would be full of traps. Bear traps, and hidden pits, and trip wires.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo snorted. “If you lived here it would be laser-tripped alarms and hidden swordsmen ready to leap out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If it were Trowa, the garden would just be full of lions.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Heero would have a perimeter of landmines.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Quatre… Quatre probably already owns a house on this street.” Wufei held his hand out to Duo for his glass. “Shall I get us a refill, before everyone else arrives?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clearly relieved for a slightly longer respite, Duo passed his glass across, then resumed admiring the view of the water. Or casing the row of houses, either was possible from the way he leaned out over the edge and looked contemplatively up and down again. Caitlin and Oliver were unloading the dishwasher when Wufei arrived, clearly in the middle of a discussion which stopped when he entered, and Oliver smiled brightly at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That was a neat little trick Duo pulled earlier,” he said, with cheer that was perhaps a little forced as he obligingly filled up the glasses. “Think I can get my hands on one of them doodads, since I’m workin’ with you Preventers? Could come in handy!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That wasn’t Preventers issue,” Wufei said absently. “Duo made it. Won’t even let the techs near it to see. He doesn’t want them doing a hatchet job on his code.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He </span>
  <em>
    <span>made</span>
  </em>
  <span> it?” Caitlin asked, straightening up and looking startled. “The whole thing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, he’s always been good at that interaction between digital and physical. My strength has always been the physical side. I’m afraid I would have just smashed the window.” Wufei took the drinks back off Oliver and paused, realising that Caitlin and Oliver looked surprised and a little confused. “I know it seems surprising, as he never finished school, but he really is something of a genius. He’d probably be unstoppable if he’d ever had the inclination towards academia.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or crime,” Caitlin said, and Oliver let out a slightly too fast and slightly too loud laugh, which Caitlin echoed a split second too late and with somewhat less gusto. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess I always figured he was the pretty one and you were the smart one in the relationship,” Oliver added hastily, clapping Wufei on the shoulder as if to put him at ease. “That’s the way it is here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m the pretty one </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> the smart one,” Caitlin disagreed, turning back to the dishwasher, just as the full meaning of Oliver’s statement filtered through Wufei’s socially inept synapses.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait,” he said, “we’re not -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The front door opened and greetings were called down the hallway. Oliver whirled off to go meet the other guests. Briefly torn about following behind to correct the assumption before it could go too far, he decided instead that his priority was currently stood at the far end of the garden, skipping pebbles across the water and trying to reach the other bank before they sank. The voices from the house reached Duo before Wufei did and he turned, gaze skimming past Wufei and into the kitchen, before focusing back on his friend. The grin which fixed on his face was his brightest and most charming.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei remembered it all too well. He remembered the first time he saw it, on Peacemillion. He remembered the same, strange cold feeling that came with it too. At least now he knew why.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Duo was used to feeling like he was being watched, but usually the people doing it were significantly more subtle. For all Oliver had forewarned his friends, the parade of them coming and being introduced to him had felt very much like he was a novelty on display for assessment, and every single one had spent the conversation looking between the two of them and doing a poor job of hiding their surprise. From there Duo could look in any single direction and see pairs or groups of people talking quietly between themselves and looking over at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At least the kids seemed to like him. Joe, Billy, Niamh, and Chloe had all spent a lot of the afternoon coming up to show him things they could do (“Look at my handstand, Uncle Duo!”, “look at my wobbly tooth!”, “look, I can do a karate kick!”), or telling him things they knew (“did you know that cows have four stomachs?”, “listen to me do my three times table!”). That was a weirdly welcome distraction. Were all kids so earnest? At any rate, Niamh didn’t appear to have been unduly traumatised by her incarceration in the trunk. That hadn’t been much fun - all his nerves still jangling from his last mission, hearing the kid start to panic had led to an unpleasant blending of his personal past with his mission persona, and his present. He’d tasted bile again at the back of his throat before he’d decided that using his skeleton key in front of them was the lesser of two evils. He didn’t like people knowing about that - it was bad enough the tech teams kept trying to get Une to lean on him to give it over. If they got hold of it, every fucking Preventer would have one, and then when he was on assignment his targets would know what that little card in his wallet was, know where he got it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Might as well walk right in with ‘I’m a Preventer’ tattooed on his forehead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The afternoon had been spent circling awkwardly between different clusters of people as they made awkward small talk. They’d laughed gamely the first time Duo had answered a prying question about his personal history with “If I told you, I’d have to kill you”, but apparently that had stopped being funny on the fifth telling. Maybe they should stop asking questions Duo didn’t want to – and at times legally </span>
  <em>
    <span>couldn’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> – answer. Wufei hadn’t fared much better, until someone had asked him about the delineation of Preventer jurisdiction across multiple areas of criminal law, and then they’d been off talking about legal precedent, judicial purview, and the risks of unloading all charges against a client in one go. Wufei lived for this kind of academic problem-solving – justice is justice – but Duo really wasn’t in the mood to talk shop. He hated how smug they all seemed about the clever loopholes and exemptions they were able to discover, as if this was all some kind of abstract thought exercise, ignoring that this was about real people, real atrocities. He wondered how Wufei could stand it, but supposed that was why he was a Preventer and not a lawyer. He focused on making sure there weren’t any loopholes to exploit. Know your enemy, out-think them at their own game.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was what Duo did, after all.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Leaving the group to it, he slid over to the table by the barbecue, and began to construct a burger for himself, trying to force the muscles in his back to relax, to try and calm himself down. Two weeks ago he’d been at a ‘family’ gathering during his undercover role. Trying to make sure he didn’t get stabbed in the kidneys by the guy he’d been setting up to take the fall for the Preventer raid that happened just as the barbecue had been dying down, when everyone was full and sleepy and a little bit tipsy. Been concentrating on looking innocent and making the other guy look guilty and weird and paranoid, and making sure he was in plain sight when he got taken down by agents - forcibly - and carted into one of the armoured vans. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Trowa had really enjoyed doing the taking down. He always did. Duo’d known that after Lunar Base - that’s why he tried to request Trowa be on the raid team every time. The man didn’t flinch away from making it look authentic.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So he was a little twitchy. And, yes, sulking like a child. Especially because every fucker here was not-so-subtly watching him the entire time, clearly contemplating and assessing and making all sorts of judgements about him without actually talking to him. All of them in fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>chinos,</span>
  </em>
  <span> like did they all have a uniform, or…?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It didn’t help that this whole thing was supposed to be about building bridges with Cait, and she was simultaneously avoiding him and giving him the stink-eye. So, what, he was here to prove to her he could behave like a decent human being and she wasn’t going to even give him the time of day? Like some kind of performing monkey - come see the poor boy act like a rich boy! Even after he rescued the brat from the machinations of her other brat - </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That wasn’t fair, he chided himself. Kids were kids. It wasn’t their fault their mother was a judgemental shrew. You couldn’t help your blood.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was rapidly learning that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Speaking of the devil, Oliver appeared just as Duo finished aggressively assembling his burger, squashing it as flat as possible so he could hold it in one hand and use the plate to catch any crumbs with the other. He’d just taken a giant, irritable bite from it when Oliver scooped him up and began to steer him into the house, saying there was someone he just </span>
  <em>
    <span>had</span>
  </em>
  <span> to meet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Somehow he doubted that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He still had his mouth full when Oliver brought him to a stop at a small cluster of three men in the living room and rapidly introduced them. Duo had to put the burger down - an action which greatly jeopardised the structural integrity of the whole thing, as the bread started to spring half-heartedly back into shape - and wipe his hand quickly on his jeans before shaking the proffered hands from Steve, Jamie and Tom. Their eyes tracked the action, and he wished he’d just smeared ketchup all over them instead of bothering.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tom’s the guy I wanted you to meet,” Oliver said, clapping the man on the shoulder. Tom didn’t seem anything special - shorter than Oliver and Duo, average height. Trim enough, probably a runner from the way his chinos hugged his calves, but his polo shirt didn’t highlight anything particularly noteworthy on his upper body. Brown eyes, dirty blonde hair that was cut short and stylish. A straight nose, thin lips, a chin that was just about turning up to the party, and an expression that had something of the calculating weasel about it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Certainly didn’t seem worth dragging Duo in here with a mouthful of burger.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We know each other from Uni, but what’re the odds - Tom’s from L2 as well! Same colony as us!” Oliver said ‘us’ as though he and Duo were a similar unit with similar experiences. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He swallowed the burger, and said thickly,</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Same colony as who? You were barely there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d meant it as a low blow, but all four of the others chuckled heartily, and Tom gave Oliver a playful shove.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s what I always said!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can see you two are going to get along just fine. I’ll leave you to it.” Oliver skipped away before Duo could try and leave with him, and instead was left stranded in the direct, assessing gaze of the three strangers, including Tom-from-L2.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jesus, like Tom was going to have been from his neighbourhood.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So…” Steve said slowly, gesturing vaguely at Duo’s clothes, and his hair. “That’s… a look. Are you some kind of goth or…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you some kind of trust fund kid?” Duo shot back, looking pointedly from collar to deck shoes and back. “Or... is this a boy band situation?” He looked across each of them, pausing pointedly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s the hair I love,” Jamie said, as if Duo wasn’t right there listening to them. “Like that’s commitment to an aesthetic. I’ve never seen a guy with hair that long outside of heavy metal festivals.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can tell you go to a lot of those,” Duo drawled. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tom was looking at the braid thoughtfully.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When I was a kid, I went to school with a boy who had long hair like that,” he mused, and something cold started running through Duo’s veins. He forced his shoulders to stay relaxed as he set the plate with the burger onto a nearby table. He wasn’t hungry anymore.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, this weird kid there on this inclusion scheme. He was always getting into fights, couldn’t take a joke. Aggressive little psychopath,” he mused. “He just stopped turning up one day. Probably killed someone.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, he was nuts. He shouldn’t have been there in the first place.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why not?” Duo asked, keeping his tone as smooth and sweet as honey even as he felt his entire body go cold right down to his soul, echoes of tiny voices ringing in his ears. Poor. Smelly. Stupid. Dirty. Tom wasn’t wrong either, he’d definitely killed someone. A lot of someones. And there was always room for another. “Why didn’t he deserve to be there?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He was from this orphanage,” Tom said, dismissively. “Church run. They should have just kept them all together and educated them there. Not like the Catholics were ever short of money.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You went to church a lot on L2 then?” Duo’s vision was fuzzing at the edges with rage, but he’d let his body hang loose, nothing tense so he could move whichever way he wanted when the time came. Fight or flight, and fight was winning. “Got down that neck of the woods for mass each week?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh god no,” Tom laughed, light and easy, unbothered, the picture of privilege and an easy life. “My parents would have been lynched! But you know, it’s not fair on high performing kids to have to dumb things down for… low achievers. It’s not like they were ever going to appreciate the opportunity anyway. All those inclusion kids are probably locked up now anyway, why waste the resources and jeopardise things for everyone else?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And you were… fine picking on orphan kids?” Duo’s could feel murder clawing at his vocal cords, trying to slide its way onto its face. “From your lovely house and lovely family?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, this kid wasn’t a normal orphan,” Tom said, a little defensively, as Steve and Jamie started to look a little uncomfortable. “He was a nutcase. I don’t know when you left, if you remember what it was like there, but they had a real problem with these kids - street kids, they were practically feral. This one was the worst, he bit me once. Broke the skin.” Tom held out his arm to show a faint scar just below the elbow. Duo remembered it, the knot of children scrapping and tangled on the floor, four of them on him, whilst he lashed out and attacked with everything he’d got. Felt the same adrenaline gripping him now. “I had to get a tetanus shot,” Tom continued, as though it made everything reasonable. “Should have checked for rabies. He disappeared not long after that - I don’t know if he got expelled. Heard the church and orphanage burnt down, wouldn’t be too surprised if he set it on fire himsel-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo realised he’d moved after Tom was on the ground. After the side table had been knocked over, vase and flowers and plate and burger trampled underfoot as people simultaneously dived out of the way and tried to crowd round to see what the commotion was. After blood started pouring from somewhere on Tom’s face, beneath the hand that was pressed to the bloody mess underneath. After his knuckles pulsed with the satisfying sting of a punch well-landed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A single punch took out Tom, who sprawled on the carpet trying to catch the blood and gaping like a fish.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It did nothing for the ghosts and echoes suddenly crowding Duo’s head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He shouldered his way through the crowd and barged out the front door, slamming it behind him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time Wufei found him - hidden round the far side of the house, in the narrow gap between wall and fence, puffing on a cigarette from a pack he’d liberated on his way out of the crowd. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t care about Une’s dumb rule,” he said by way of greeting, as Wufei rounded the corner. “I ain’t sticking around for three months. Get her to send me out again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei snatched the cigarette from his fingers and ground it out aggressively against the wall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t smoke.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I do now,” Duo said, “picked it up while I was away.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why there’s the three month decompression period,” Wufei snapped, wrestling the pack out of Duo’s hand and then throwing it over the fence, in a frankly environmentally unsound and un-neighbourly move. “If the lines blur too much you forget who you are.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And who am I?” Duo stuck his chin out and folded his arms.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, apparently you’re more like your brother than you thought,” the other man said dryly. “Both of you a little too inclined to take a swing at people.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s lucky I didn’t fuckin’ bite him again,” Duo muttered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Again</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before Wufei could press for an answer, there was a kerfuffle round the front of the house, the sound of several people shuffling out of the front door - apologies, reassurances, and a bunged-up voice loudly complaining about a psychopath brother. Car doors opened and closed, and an engine started, a single car pulling away. Tom-from-L2 had made his exit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a heavy sigh, and then voices again, and these carried clearly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What the bloody hell was that?” Cait demanded. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, I don’t know -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, that’s the point! You </span>
  <em>
    <span>don’t</span>
  </em>
  <span> know him! You met him less than two weeks ago! He might have the same face as you, but that doesn’t mean you </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> him! Jesus Christ, Oliver, the man’s a psychopath!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey now, that’s not-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He brought a </span>
  <em>
    <span>knife</span>
  </em>
  <span> to a </span>
  <em>
    <span>barbecue</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”          </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo sighed and pushed away from the wall.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on, let’s get outta here,” he said, strolling past Wufei and out into the drive. Oliver spotted him before Caitlin, who continued to rant until she noticed the expression on Oliver’s face. “You don’t gotta worry ‘bout me coming round again, Cait. All’s safe from the Bad Man.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He heard Wufei pause behind him. Heard him hesitate before awkwardly thanking Oliver and Caitlin for having them, and made a practiced comment about their lovely home, before the car was unlocked and they both slid inside. There was a long moment where he knew Wufei was thinking about saying something, but Duo propped his elbow on the door, his chin on his hand, and stared resolutely out of the window until the engine started and the car pulled away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fuck family. Fuck Oliver.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Snelweg is the Dutch word for motorway!</p>
<p>I truly believe my claustrophobia came about after some boys I knew when I was young tricked me into getting into a laundry hamper and then sat on top and wouldn't let me get out. Boys, man.</p>
<p>Okay, so there's a chance Tom is somewhat outside the odds, but hear me out. I went to Canada a few years back to meet my husband's family, and while we were there in like central Alberta, we decided to take three days in the Rockies and drove out to Jasper. And at the top of a mountain, in Jasper, the guy running the ski lift was from my little home town back in England. IT'S A SMALL WORLD AND I'M WEAPONISING THAT FOR FIC.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Five</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Wufei hadn’t seen Duo since Saturday. The ride back to Brussels had been silent, and Duo had slunk out of the car when Wufei stopped at traffic lights, giving the roof a brusque slap in thanks before disappearing off down a side alley. The whole thing had backfired horribly, and though it wasn’t – strictly speaking – Wufei’s fault, he was left alone with a sense of gnawing guilt for the rest of the weekend. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was what he got for interfering, he supposed. For making assumptions about what would be good for Duo, assuming that Duo was just being stubborn when he knew his own boundaries. The whole thing had been out of character for Wufei, but his secondary motivations meant he deserved all the guilt and more. He’d wanted Duo to feel like he had something outside of missions, to see that there was something that he could stay around for. So he wouldn’t be gone for so long, so frequently. A family was a decent incentive, something which might ground him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That had backfired beautifully. It was certainly karmic given Wufei’s attempt at scheming – something which had never suited him – but he couldn’t help but regret that he wasn’t the only casualty of it all. He had been too weak to resist temptation, dressing it up as philanthropy, and he’d made a mess of it all. Hurt Oliver. Hurt Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He needed to get control of himself. He’d let Oliver’s appearance strip back some of his barriers - seeing someone so like Duo who was able to be vulnerable and happy and in love. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei wasn’t naive, or generally inclined to romance. He didn’t expect that Duo would settle down with him. But he wanted to see Duo happy, and whole. Duo was right to have been worried at Oliver’s arrival, it had blinded Wufei to what he had, and who Duo really was. For a few short weeks he had been swept up in the idea that Duo had a way out, that he could maybe live the sort of life none of the others could. The sort of life Duo watched people having, when they were out together, in the city, in the towns, a little wistfully.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He should have realised that he was only really capable of destroying anything good that he touched anyway. A lifetime of experience should have reminded him of that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver was already in the office when he arrived, looking tired and a little rumpled. He looked up as the door opened and gave Wufei a slightly wan smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can only imagine your weekend went as well as mine,” he said, kicking out Wufei’s chair with his foot as he approached the table. “Pull up a pew and let’s compare notes."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You look…” Wufei paused for a moment as he settled into his seat, trying to find the right word. “...Tired.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Drove back up this mornin’.” Oliver reached for the coffee on the table and took a deep mouthful. “Spent basically all night scrappin’ with Cait. She was mad as fire. How’s Duo?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We haven’t spoken since we got back on Saturday evening,” Wufei told him flatly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He didn’t strike me as the type to hit you with the silent treatment,” Oliver said. “Although I’d thought you’d be the one that was mad, he was the one pickin’ a fight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oh, yes, Wufei supposed it was time to have that conversation. The one he didn’t have time for on Saturday.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are aware that Duo and I… are not in a relationship?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver looked confused for a moment, then a little embarrassed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sorry, Duo took me back to his place, and you were there, and there were only two bedrooms, so I figured…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>my</span>
  </em>
  <span> place, not Duo’s. He slept on the couch.” Wufei started pulling files out of the box on the table, shrugging out of his jacket and draping it over the back of his chair. “On Saturday, I dropped him at home and I haven’t seen him since. His behaviour was as much my fault as it was his - I tried to force him into a situation he wasn’t comfortable with. I took his protests as reluctance instead of truth.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was silence as Oliver grabbed his own file and sipped at his coffee some more. He didn’t turn over any pages in the file, but Wufei ignored him and focused instead on his own work, continuing his notes from where he had left off the week before. He could feel Oliver watching him, and wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of looking up or acknowledging him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why - ?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The door slammed open, making both of them jump, Oliver’s coffee ending up down his shirt, as Une strode into the room, finger pointed at him, face furious.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Maxwell</span>
  </em>
  <span>, if I catch you in here one more time, I will arrest you myself!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>!?” Oliver screeched, as Wufei leapt up from his chair and swiftly inserted himself between his commander and the hapless lawyer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Commander,” he said hastily, when she glanced at him in disgust, “can I introduce you to Oliver McGann? He’s the solicitor working with us on the Hernandez case.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What on earth are you talking about?” she demanded, reaching out to push Wufei aside, only to find he wouldn’t be budged. The beat it took made her stop, collect herself, and look at Oliver again, eyes roaming across his hair, his suit, the way he was stood behind his chair, looking confused and terrified, as he tried to hold the hot, wet material of his shirt away from his skin. She did this three times, her gaze returning to his face each time as she tried to process what she was seeing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wasn’t happy. Drawing herself upright, she set her chin and glowered at Wufei.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My office,” she snapped. “Now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She strode out of the door, not checking to see whether Wufei would follow her. He glanced at Oliver, who was looking like this day had proven to be a mistake from the very beginning. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I’m goin’ to call it today,” he said, finally, reaching across to grab his now empty cup and toss it into the bin. “I’m no use to man or beast, and I can’t deal with any more surprises.” He swung his jacket on, and buttoned it up in the hope it might cover the stain. It didn’t. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei watched Oliver slouch out the room towards the foyer, not looking back once, before he made his own way towards Une’s office. She had left the door open for him, and he shut it behind him and stood at loose attention in front of her desk. There were chairs there, but she looked extremely agitated, and he preferred to be standing if she were inclined to start stomping around and barking at him. She surveyed him with simmering irritation written clearly across her face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was anyone planning on notifying me of this?” she asked, finally.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It didn’t seem worth interrupting your visit to L3 for a personal matter,” he said dryly. “Nor did it seem my place to report on the family circumstances of other employees.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A personal matter? Is that why Maxwell was using Preventers’ resources to complete a DNA check?” She leaned forwards across her desk, hands planted on the blotter. “Or perhaps the fact that we have someone with the same face as one of our undercover agents blithely swanning in and out of the front of our HQ doesn’t rate as a security issue - and as you were working with him directly, I would suggest that makes it very much your place.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t flinch, and resisted the urge to look down his nose at her, a move which would only exacerbate the situation, even if she was being patently ridiculous.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what course of action would you have suggested?” he asked, trying to keep his voice measured. “McGann was hired for the role under fair recruitment policies, firing him because he happens to look like another agent would, I suspect, be grounds for a discrimination lawsuit - particularly when we can’t divulge that’s the reason we’re firing him, because as far as all external parties are concerned, Maxwell doesn’t work for us. That would be an interesting moral and legal quandary wouldn’t it? If he sued us, would we have to commit perjury to explain why he was dismissed, or have it become a matter of public record that Maxwell is a Preventer? Should I call McGann in and ask for his advice on the matter, since he is our consulting solicitor?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une was silent for a very long moment, her glare like acid. She was trapped between a rock and a hard place, and left with limited room to manoeuvre. Duo was one of her longest-serving undercover agents, had done a huge variety of missions, and was happy to take long-term placements around the whole Earth Sphere - had volunteered to do so over Preventers with families on several occasions. What would happen if his face was compromised? If his involvement with the Preventers became known? There was a lot at stake, but Wufei hadn’t been authorised to disclose Duo’s exact status - only Une was. He couldn’t start telling Oliver to come in through the back door each day without having to answer why. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Perhaps he should have called Une, perhaps sticking to the exact letter of the edict rather than the spirit of it was an episode of malicious compliance. Perhaps any one of the other agents and officers should have called Une. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is McGann now?” she demanded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He went back to his hotel, he was feeling unwell.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tell him to stay there. I’ll speak to both him and Maxwell tomorrow, and work out what we’re going to do about this situation.” She straightened up again, abrupt and thoroughly hacked off. “You’re dismissed.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wasn’t going to hang around arguing. He was in the corridor before she could change her mind, and then found himself wondering what the plan was for the rest of the day, since Oliver had left, but he wasn’t presently assigned to any active cases. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Suddenly feeling as though he had spent far too much time lately sitting at a table, and filled with frustrated energy, Wufei made his way down towards the gym, for a day of intense training. After that, he might be able to call Oliver, and perhaps explain why he was facing the wrath of the head of the Preventers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The hotel that Oliver was staying in was alright, nothing to shout about. Certainly no great shakes in terms of security - he’d strolled in with no problem, braid tucked under his jacket and bangs pushed under a cap, flirted with the woman on reception to get a key card under the pretence he’d ‘lost’ his, and seen the room number over her shoulder on the computer. In under five minutes he was sitting on the edge of his brother’s bed, looking around the hotel room with only mild disgust. He took the cap off and ruffled his hair back into place, shrugging out of his jacket and leaving both discarded on the impersonal, white duvet. The bedding was all white. The walls were magnolia, except for one feature wall at the head of the bed which was painted royal purple. The carpet was dark blue, and speckled. The white sheets could be bleached to hide the sins, on the carpet it would be just another fleck in the pattern.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t quite a budget hotel - slightly up from budget. It was a real bathroom rather than a plastic pod, but the shower was in a bath with a purple shower curtain. There was a little desk under the TV at the foot of the bed, but it also doubled as a dressing table and counter for the miniature kettle and coffee sachets. There was a long sort-of sofa under the window, but Duo knew that doubled up as a bed when the room was made up for a family. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bed hadn’t been slept in - it was too early for housekeeping to have been round, so Duo guessed Oliver mustn’t have come back from home yet. There were only a few items scattered around the room to suggest he would be coming back - a discarded paperback, a framed family photograph, a handful of change. He must have taken all his laundry at the weekend too. A quick poke through the wardrobe revealed a few spare shirts and a spare suit, some ties and a spare pair of work shoes lined up neatly beside those casual boots and a pair of trainers. A gym kit and his jeans and sweaters were folded up neatly on the shelf above the clothes rail, whilst the drawer below had a couple of pairs of underwear and socks. Next to the kettle was a packet of tea bags which had clearly been brought with Oliver. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There wasn’t much that Duo could find out about Oliver from the few things left behind, except for the fact that apparently he was a bit of a neat freak, and actually unpacked all his things when he was staying anywhere as opposed to just living out of his bag. But anything which gave more of a clue to him had been carted home for the weekend, and would probably be with him wherever he was now. But Duo wasn’t really here for that sort of thing anyway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo didn’t want to hang around his apartment all day, he’d seen far too much of it over the last couple of days and been stewing in his own bad mood. It had taken a bit of time for him to realise he needed to speak to Oliver one-to-one, and then even longer for him to rev himself up to actually going to do it. That was why he was here so early - he had no idea when Oliver was due back, but he knew that if he waited at home he’d just talk himself out of it, and Une was back so turning up at the HQ before she summoned him would be a bad idea. He did have some kind of survival instinct.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Picking up the book, he flicked through it contemplatively - dog-eared, the page marked with an old train ticket, it was a crappy spy thriller. He read a few passages and snorted disdainfully before tossing it aside. Oliver had shitty taste in books at any rate. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After studying the bed for a moment, Duo concluded that sprawling out for a nap on it would probably be crossing a line, even if it was just a hotel bed. He snagged the remote for the TV and flopped down on the long sofa, scrolling aimlessly through the channels until he found something that was just the right level of brainless, trying to distract himself from the reason he was here. He figured it would probably be a long wait.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t as long as he’d thought. About an hour later, the door banged open and shuffling feet paused in the little passage into the room as the noise of the TV drifted that way. A few seconds later, Oliver appeared, huge coffee stain on his shirt, brandishing his briefcase like a weapon. Duo muted the TV and raised an eyebrow at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You gonna administrate me to death?” he asked, propping himself up on his elbow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are you doing here?” Oliver demanded, wariness being exchanged for angry outrage. “How the hell did you get in?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yer wee lass on reception gave me a new key, since I’d managed to lose mine,” Duo said, letting his voice slip into his recently mastered brogue, a perfect imitation of Oliver’s. “I told her I was much obliged, to be sure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No-one says to be sure,” Oliver snapped, stomping over and dumping his briefcase on the table and shrugging out of his jacket as he loosened his tie knot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’d ask who pissed in your coffee, but you didn’t even drink it,” Duo said dryly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I spent the weekend getting bollocked by my wife because you decided to fuckin’ lamp one of our guests!” Oliver whirled on him, brandishing the tie, face red with anger, making the dark shadows under his eyes stand out more. Someone was snippy and sleep-deprived. “And now I come back and find you’ve broken into my room! That’s not normal behaviour!” Oliver turned and threw the tie on the table as well, starting to angrily unbutton his shirt - although that took longer than doing it calmly would have done, as he kept fumbling the buttons. He gave up with a furious sigh about halfway down and just pulled it over his head, scrunching it into a ball and throwing it on the floor. “Cait was right - I don’t know anything about you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I told you that I wasn’t made for that sorta party.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Understatement of the fuckin’ century there, mate.” Oliver scrubbed his hands over his face and then up into his hair, mussing up the carefully styled cut. “What’re you even doing here? Piss off, will you, I’m not in the mood.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I had to talk to you.” Duo sat up, planting his feet on the floor and resting his elbows on his knees, letting his hands dangle between them. “‘Bout Saturday.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve done enough talking about that to last me a lifetime,” Oliver said dismissively. “I want a shower, a cuppa, and a nap.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I went to school with Tom,” Duo blurted, forcing it through the iron defenses which kept his past private, his tragedies entirely his own. Oliver paused on his way to the bathroom and turned back to Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Back on L2,” he forced out through gritted teeth, hands clenching into fists as he spoke. “I don’t think he realised it, but I remembered him alright. That scar on his arm? I gave him that last time I saw him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver frowned and padded a couple of steps closer, warily.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He said some street kid gave him that…” Oliver said slowly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo nodded once, jerkily, his throat tight.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There wasn’t any foster system,” he said, voice rough. “Not for me. And Tom’s L2 and my L2? Weren’t even nearly the same. They bled into each other, a little, at the edges, but that was it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought you’d be able to reminisce about it.” Oliver settled himself on the far side of the bed, tense and unsure. “He was always joking about what a shithole it was, I thought you’d be able to relate.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo snorted derisively.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tom’s got no fuckin’ idea,” he laughed, bitterly. “His shithole was poor people dirtyin’ his air. He don’t know the real L2. He never saw past the area made just for him and his people.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not fair,” Oliver said, pausing in the process of unlacing his shoes. “Tom and his family had to evacuate when he was a teenager, because that lunatic in a gundam was going around blowing up colonies. Their home was looted before they could get their things extracted – they lost everything.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything, huh?” Duo repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Riddle me this then – if the colony was evacuated, who was there to steal their stuff?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“An’ that lootin’, did it include draining all their bank accounts too? All that money kept digitally in safe accounts?” He spread his hands wide, as if questing for an answer. “An’ I guess they had no insurance either? So they never got compensated?” At Oliver’s long, awkward silence, he shook his head. “Nah, buddy. They lost a few material things with sentimental value, but that was only ‘cause they were privileged enough to be able to get out when the colony was threatened. The people who took their stuff? They probably fuckin’ </span>
  <em>
    <span>needed </span>
  </em>
  <span>it, and even if they didn’t, they’d been left behind to die anyway so more power to them, fuckin’ over the people who threw them under the bus.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver didn’t answer, just dropped his shoes on the floor, looking annoyed, and a little embarrassed. Duo decided not to add that there had been no evacuation order for any of the L2 colonies, that Quatre hadn’t got anywhere near there. The evacuation had been cowards running because they could afford to.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look, man,” Duo said, with a sigh. “I ain’t tellin’ you this to make you feel bad about what a great life you had, or whatever. I just. I wanted to give you some kinda </span>
  <em>
    <span>context </span>
  </em>
  <span>for me. There’s a lot I can’t tell you, and there’s more that I ain’t gonna tell you because I don’t want to. But when I say that I’m not made for certain sorts of things, that’s what I mean.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay,” Oliver said, slowly. “No more barbecues.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I’m not sorry I hit Tom, but I am sorry I messed up the day. That wasn’t cool of me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, it wasn’t,” Oliver agreed, standing again. “But apology accepted.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was weird looking at Oliver’s torso - like seeing his face pasted on someone else’s body. Oliver was in shape, particularly for a civilian, but his body didn’t have the hard edges of Duo’s, that extra bit of bulk and definition. It wasn’t small, but it seemed it in comparison.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It also didn’t have the scars. It was completely unmarred. It was almost like Duo’s whole life had been peeled off and left this fresh, clean skin underneath, without the battlemarks and the muscles he’d gained fighting to stay alive. Like a nesting doll, and if you opened up the trauma doll, inside was an identical, but slightly smaller doll, who didn’t have psychological damage.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Man, what was it like to have a sibling who didn’t cause an existential trip through PTSD every time you saw them? He’d have to ask Quatre. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In fact, thinking of said… lunatic in a gundam, that did bring him to the other reason for his visit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Before we go back to… whatever,” he said, standing and rubbing his hands on his jeans, “My friends want to meet you too. They’ve invited you for dinner on Friday… ‘cept it’s not really an invite. You’ve gotta go.” Oliver bristled at that a little, and Duo didn’t blame him, but that wasn’t gonna help matters at all. “Cait’s invited, and it’ll be good food. They can arrange a ride home for you and everything so it’ll be like you’re being pampered a bit. Call it returnin’ the favour for me comin’ on Saturday.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well if that’s the case, I’ll start limbering up, so I can deck one of your friends.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you’re jokin’,” Duo drawled, “but just in case, I’ve gotta tell you - don’t.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver looked like he was about to quip back, but he caught the look in Duo’s eye and hesitated, unsure. Rubbing his hand over his mouth, he looked around the room, at nothing in particular, before sighing heavily.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine,” he said. “I’ll see if Cait can get someone to watch the kids.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thanks.” That saved an awkward conversation with Quatre - he was very good at getting what he wanted. If Oliver had refused, he probably would have turned up and taken over the Preventers’ cafeteria to collar them both for a meal at the same time. “I’ll text you the address. You’ll - uh - probably wanna dress up a bit.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it at a restaurant or something?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not quite, but that’s probably the level you wanna aim for.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“With that sales pitch,” Oliver said dryly, “I’ll look forward to that. Can I have my shower now?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo sketched a wave and headed towards the door, but Oliver called him again before he could head out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Will Wufei be there?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Frowning, Duo leaned back around the door to see Oliver looking at him expectantly. Why did he want to know? His wife was invited, what other back-up did he need?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” he said, “he’ll be there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver nodded, and Duo didn’t miss the way his shoulders relaxed a little, and some of the anxiety smoothed out of his face. He didn’t miss it, and he didn’t like it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It had almost been a relief to receive The Summons from his Fearless Leader, Duo thought the next day, as he slunk his way towards Une’s office from the back of the HQ. He’d have his debrief with her, have his psych evaluation, get given his schedule for future evals and consolidation of his testimony and evidence, and maybe - if he was efficient enough - could get shipped out again soon.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The three month decompression period could get fucked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He knocked smartly on the door and slipped inside when he was called, but his cheery smile froze into a rictus as he saw Oliver sat, looking nervous and confused, in front of the desk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” Duo said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sit down, Maxwell,” Une said, her voice clipped. “And kindly try to refrain from cussing until the meeting is over.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He slunk across the room and slouched in the chair beside his brother, who was sat very straight and tense. Oliver appeared to be trying to communicate something to Duo with just his eyebrows, but twin thing be damned, he had no idea what Oliver wanted, so he just shrugged dismissively. Une studied them both for a moment, just about managing to keep her face unreadable as her eyes flicked between them. Duo didn’t bother keeping the sullen expression hidden - this bit was the worst. He felt like a sideshow attraction, like he was reduced to a tick list of traits which people used to measure him against the man sat in the other chair. Beside him, he could almost hear Oliver’s stress receptors pinging.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I dunno about you,” Duo drawled, “but I’ve got places to be today, so if we could get this rollin’?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We have a problem,” Une told them, lacing her fingers together and apparently ignoring Duo’s snide comment, and instead choosing to address Oliver. “I credit Maxwell with occasional intelligence, so I’m going to assume he had some reason for not contacting me as soon as he became aware of you, however I will allow you the benefit of the doubt that perhaps you were unaware of the damage that may have been caused.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He doesn’t know anything,” Duo said. “He’s just doin’ his job, leave him alone.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une ignored him again and Oliver cast him a sidelong glance before speaking up himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I fail to see how my tenure here can have caused problems with any active investigations,” he began, in what must have been his courtroom voice. “I only have access to the Hernandez case, which listed Agent Chang as the lead.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The </span>
  <em>
    <span>problem</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Une said, acidly, finally focusing an icy glare at Duo, although if she expected him to look penitent or scared she was setting herself up for a disappointment, “is that Maxwell is one of our most prolific undercover agents, and as such we have all gone to great pains to ensure that his connection to the Preventers goes undetected.” She turned her gaze back to Oliver, and spoke the next words carefully, as if worried her meaning would get lost. “Consider, then, why I might be unhappy that Maxwell’s identical twin has been swanning in and out of Preventers’ flagship headquarters, in the middle of Brussels, for the better part of three weeks.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The silence stretched out like brittle elastic, ready to snap at any time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Logically, then, it would make sense that Duo never operates with Belgium to avoid these issues,” Oliver said, calmly and precisely, and it was becoming increasingly obvious why Wufei got on with him, “and, one would assume, rarely within western Europe to be extra secure. Do I understand that correctly?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t understand anything,” Une said coldly, “because you are not entitled to that information. It’s confidential.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you suggest, then?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m afraid we have to terminate your contract immediately. We will give you a further two weeks of pay in lieu of notice, and-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Excuse me?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver shifted slightly in his chair, and it was like his nerves had disappeared entirely. Suddenly he seemed sure, confident.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I came to do a job, partly for my own professional development, yes, but also because I wanted to make a difference. Hernandez needs to be put away for good, and swapping me out now for another solicitor unfamiliar with the case will jeopardise that. I will not be leaving.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une laced her fingers together and set her hands on her desk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At present, Mr McGann, I am willing to give you a reference to support any future endeavours,” she said, “but I wish to be very clear - you do not have a choice. I am firing you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“On what grounds?” he asked. “I’ve received no warnings, and I’m not guilty of gross misconduct - unless my face is somehow covered under gross misconduct in your employee terms and conditions?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are not an employee,” Une bit out. “You are a contractor.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And as such, I have a contract.” Oliver pulled out his phone and began tapping at it, before turning it around and showing it to Une. “In the absence of gross misconduct, I require one month’s notice of termination - by which point, the case will be at trial, and it would be even more unwise to remove me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo watched this with no little fascination. He was used to pissing Une off. He was used to seeing Wufei piss Une off. He wasn’t used to seeing himself piss Une off using Wufei’s techniques. Une didn’t seem to know what to do with it either. She glanced across at Duo, but if she was expecting any kind of support from him she wasn’t getting it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Duo lives in Brussels,” Oliver said, putting his phone away. “Obviously provisions have been made in his assignments so that he is able to live here without jeopardising his cases.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maxwell takes precautions,” Une said. “He is never seen entering or leaving Preventers’ premises, as a very basic starting point...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can do that, moving forwards.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maxwell also doesn’t have a family.” It was true, but she didn’t have to say it quite like that, Duo thought. With such firm satisfaction of having won an argument. “The only life he risks in his work is his own. You are a civilian, with a young family. By continuing to work here and be associated with the Preventers you are drawing risk to them.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He does have a family. I’m sat literally right here.” He spread his arms wide, tilting his hands towards himself as though Une could somehow have missed him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You understand exactly what I mean.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Surely given your concerns about my face, my living anywhere in the world and practicing law is going to put myself, my family, and your operations at risk,” Oliver snapped. “Where do you draw the line at reasonable restrictions? Either my family and I have to live in a bunker, or you lose your agent entirely.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That is </span>
  <em>
    <span>reductio ad absurdum</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stop it,” Duo barked, standing abruptly, unable to stand listening any more. His emotions were all over the place - from reluctantly touched at Oliver’s assertion of family, to dropping out of his stomach with the suggestion that he’d have to stop working. He was good at his job, he knew where he stood doing what he did. What would he do otherwise? Normal life was full of so many rules he didn’t get, he’d proved that at the fucking barbecue. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver and Une were just looking at him, waiting for him to take over the discussion. Fuck, he really didn’t want to be here. He rubbed the back of his hand across his mouth and let out a heavy sigh through his nose. Get it together, Maxwell.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll show Oliver the back ways between his hotel and here,” he said, finally. “Keep him on the case, he’s a… I guess he’s good at his job, I don’t actually know, but at the very least he don’t deserve to be fired ‘cause he’s unfortunate enough to look like me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une sighed and took her glasses off, cleaning them with a cloth she pulled from her drawer, clearly taking the moment to have a break from having to look at the pair of them in full focus. When she put them back on, she had clearly made a decision.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I will liaise with the public prosecutor’s office,” she said, “and get them to send people over to work alongside McGann and Chang on the case to ensure an overlap of knowledge. </span>
  <em>
    <span>They</span>
  </em>
  <span> will then take the case to trial,” she said firmly, skewering Oliver with an icy glare. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>You</span>
  </em>
  <span> are not to be seen anywhere near the courts before, during, or after the proceedings. Have I made myself clear?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Crystal,” Oliver said, looking angelic.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Once that is over, we will do a risk assessment to consider how to manage this going forwards. For now, Maxwell, go get your psych evaluation. McGann, you are not to leave the premises unless Maxwell is escorting you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver stood, and Duo sketched Une a sarcastic salute before escaping out the door and starting the trek up to the psych office. If he weren’t so desperate to get back out there, he’d have a </span>
  <em>
    <span>lot</span>
  </em>
  <span> to unpack this time, but right now? He was going to have to try and look the picture of psychological health so he could get a new mission before Une changed her mind on his fitness to serve. Fucking great.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you so much as ever to kangofu_cb for being the best beta and cheerleader.</p>
<p>Thank you also to everyone who has read, left kudos, and extra especially to everyone who has left comments. Things are kind of rough right now and every single bit of feedback has really brightened my day. This was a story I didn't think anyone would be interested in, and it means so much that you all are enjoying it.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Six</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Shoes tied, Oliver sat on the couch ready to go, but somehow he couldn’t convince his body to stand up. He watched Caitlin standing in front of the hotel room mirror, putting the last touches on her makeup. She was power-dressing, high heels and immaculate, bold lipstick, her thick curls framing her face like a glorious halo. She looked amazing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She looked annoyed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you think I should wear a tie?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” she said, leaning forward to put the finishing touches on her mascara. “I don’t know where we’re going. Because your</span>
  <em>
    <span> brother</span>
  </em>
  <span> won’t tell us where we’re going.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t say it like that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She paused, sighed, and put the lid on her mascara with a careful and precise ‘click’ before setting it back in her makeup bag. Another beat, and she turned to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” she said, and that was unexpected. Oliver understood she was mad, understood she was hurt and suspicious, he was expecting her to absolutely sail through this evening because she was so good at that sort of thing, but he had also been expecting her to be mad at him for a while longer. He understood that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” he said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just -” She paused, like she was trying to find the worlds. Caitlin was always so good with words, so this was unsettling, and Oliver was already feeling unsettled. “He’s come out of nowhere, and there’s something about him that makes me nervous.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I get that.” He stood, moving over to her, but paused because he didn’t want to rumple her dress, smear her makeup. “I just want to do right by him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it just about him?” she asked, cautious. “You’ve never wanted to find out about your birth family, you always said you had all the family you needed. If it’s just about him – you don’t owe him anything. You’re not responsible for the different lives you led, and you’re not responsible for any of the choices he’s made since.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Was it about Duo? Oliver let his wife take his hands, hold them in hers, thumbs brushing softly across the back of them, as he thought about this. He had never felt anything was missing in his life. His parents had always been open about his adoption, but he had never felt abandoned or lacking in love, they were his family completely and absolutely. It didn’t matter whose DNA made him up, he was a McGann through and through, sprawling out along the family web to distant cousins and aunts and uncles piled on top of one another. He was rooted and grounded in his history and family and life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That upbringing meant that he couldn’t just push Duo away. Deeply in his soul, this man was family and family was unnegotiable. It wasn’t that he felt he owed him anything – did he? No. It was just a fact. Duo was family, although not a McGann (Or a Creen, or a Crook, or a Quinn, or a…), and so he was bound to him. It wasn’t about uncovering the past, or making amends, it was about tying up another strand of his expansive family web, the web which held them all together. Because that was the right thing to do, because that’s what families did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s just this evening,” Oliver promised her, as she looked at him waiting for his answer. “After that things’ll slow down. It all got away from us a bit is all. We just have to get through this evening. I’ll even drive, so you can drink. Make it a bit easier.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She didn’t look entirely convinced, and he didn’t feel very convincing, but they headed down to the car, put the details into the satnav, and started to cruise through the streets of Brussels. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At this time of evening, they were pretty quiet. The address was on the outskirts, as the buildings started to thin out. They turned down a street and found themselves in a lot of warehouses, an industrial estate with darkened forecourts and parked up lorries.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you sure this is right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The satnav says this is the way,” Caitlin said, although she didn’t sound convinced. “Maybe it’s one of those… pop ups?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They steered into a car park around the back of a warehouse, the surface cracked and pot-holed. All the lights were out save one, under which a large, black car with tinted windows was parked. The satnav beeped that they had arrived at their destination as they rolled to a stop.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you want to call Duo?” Caitlin asked slowly, holding out the phone to Oliver but not looking at him. He wasn’t looking either as he took it. Instead he was watching the door to the big black car open and a giant of a man get out, tall and broad with a precise beard. The man straightened his jacket, while another man - this one more normal-sized - climbed out the other side, and they both began to walk towards the car. Caitlin reached forward and hit the button to lock the doors, and Oliver subtly shifted into first gear and held the clutch on the bite, ready to pull away if needed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>What the hell was this? Did Duo set this up?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The men got closer to the car and the first one tapped on Oliver’s window politely. Caitlin’s hand gripped his thigh really quite hard, so he only wound it down enough to speak through as he unflexed her fingers from their bruising lock.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mr. McGann?” the large man rumbled, his voice a deep bass. “My name is Rashid, and this is Abdul. We have been sent here to meet you, to take you to dinner.” Abdul smiled cheerfully at them, but it wasn’t that reassuring.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sent by…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your brother, Duo, gave us your details,” Rashid said. “If you would like to contact him to confirm the arrangements, however, I understand.” His gaze flicked pointedly to Caitlin’s hand - now clenched in his jacket - and the lock light on the dashboard. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clearing his throat awkwardly, Oliver nodded, and Rashid fell back a step as he knocked the car into neutral and called Duo’s phone. It rang once, twice, and Oliver tried not to feel like Rashid was watching him, even though the giant man was politely looking the other way and making quiet conversation with his companion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s up?” Duo didn’t even bother with a greeting, he sounded a little stressed. Well, it was alright for him, but he wasn’t the one stranded in a deserted car park with two strange men. “You lost?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re in a car park,” Oliver hissed, “and there are these strange men here. I thought we were going for a meal?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo sighed gustily across the microphone and made the line buzz. “Yeah, look man, it’s kinda necessary for security reasons. Remember what Une was fussin’ about the other day? Rashid’s a solid guy, you’ll be alright with him. It’s just… You can’t be seen drivin’ up here. I mean, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> can’t be seen drivin’ up here, so that goes for you too.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where the hell are we having dinner?” Oliver demanded, feeling a headache pressing at his temples. This was supposed to be an easy evening - get in, eat, get out. This wasn’t supposed to be an exercise in subterfuge. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s he saying?” Caitlin asked in an urgent whisper, but Oliver waved her off. One thing at a time, right now.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I also can’t give you the direct address,” Duo said, with a slightly apologetic tone to his voice. “It’s… classified.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But we’re going there to eat,” Oliver said, and he could hear his voice getting higher pitched as his stress levels rose. “How can it be classified if we’re having dinner there? And you could have fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>warned</span>
  </em>
  <span> us!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Would you have come if I had?” Duo asked, which was an irritatingly fair point. “Look, just… get in the car with Rashid. I promise it’s ok. I’ll see you in a bit.” And then the line went dead. Oliver stared at the phone for a long moment, in outraged disbelief. What the hell was that? They were just supposed to get in the car with these blokes they’d never met and…?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Time to weigh up the options: to go ahead with the dinner and hope that everything worked out fine; or accept that Caitlin might be right, and Duo was involved in something really, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> shady outside Preventing, and just drive back to the hotel. Caitlin was staring at him from one side, and he could see that Rashid had turned to watch the car from the other, like two little figures tugging at his thoughts and trying to force his decision.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fuck it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re supposed to get the lift,” he told Caitlin chirpily, putting on the handbrake and turning off the engine. Couldn’t let her see his conflict, or she would push to go home. “He just forgot to tell us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Seems like a pretty big thing to forget,” she muttered, but followed his lead with a little reluctance as he unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped out of the car. Rashid and Abdul walked back towards them, smiling magnanimously as they drew closer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m glad the situation has been cleared up,” Rashid said, holding his arm out to guide them towards his own tank of a car like a gentle shepherd. “Please make yourselves comfortable and relax. We are not far away, so should arrive shortly.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They settled into the rear seats and buckled up, noting that the doors locked behind them as the engine started and Abdul pulled away. Rashid dialled his own phone, and quietly told whoever answered him that they were enroute, before hanging up and the rest of the ride continued in silence. Caitlin’s nerves seemed to be almost equally balanced with irritation, which Oliver would take as a win - he didn’t want to scare her. He didn’t want to be scared himself, but the last thing he wanted was for her to be uncomfortable or in danger because of him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He hoped to God he’d made the right choice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They wound their way down country lanes before stopping in front of a large set of metal gates set in a long, high hedge. Rashid pulled a device from his pocket and pointed it at them, and they swung open smoothly to admit the car, closing silently behind them. The drive beyond was lit by tasteful lampposts interspersed at set intervals along a low, perfectly-manicured hedge. In the twilight, they could see a wide expanse of garden spreading in each direction, trees and shrubs providing breaks in the lawns and hiding large parts of the estate from view. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my god,” Caitlin breathed, as the house came into view. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was huge - tasteful, as much as a house that big can be, but huge. Red brick, large windows, a patio that seemed to wrap down either side off the circular driveway. A driveway which had several cars parked on it, and a slip road that led down to a large side building with wide doors, that Oliver guessed was probably some kind of very, very large garage. The truck pulled slowly around the driveway and pulled to a stop in front of the wide, shallow steps up to the front door. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rashid was out to open the door for them before they had unbuckled their seatbelts, giving Caitlin a precise hand out of the car and stepping aside for Oliver, gesturing them up towards the door, which was swinging open before they’d even mounted the steps, another Middle Eastern man in a suit watching them approach impassively. He reached for Caitlin’s hand as she reached for his. Her palm was sweaty, or his was. Or they both were. So much for this being a good idea.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They stepped into a warmly-lit foyer, the door shut behind them with a quiet and finite ‘click’. No escape now. They were in the middle of the countryside, locked in a house with acres of ground. All they could do was let the butler or whatever he was lead them towards a door on the far side of the large foyer, past the sweeping staircase.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The room on the other side of the door was lit with warm light. Large windows and glass doors ran down one wall, overlooking what in the daylight would certainly be an incredible view of the gardens, but for now they just reflected back a slightly shadowy version of the rest of the room, making it look double its already generous size. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There were sofas and armchairs clustered near the door, arranged around a large fireplace, and the far end of the room had a large dining table, all laid and ready for dinner. People were arrayed around the room chatting quietly to each other. Oliver spotted Duo, leaning against the back of the sofa and holding a beer, looking a little sulky. He was just in a t-shirt and jeans, which seemed a bit rich after telling Oliver to dress up - although given the location, he was feeling better for being in a suit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei stood a little way away, talking to the two Preventers he’d met outside Agent Po’s office that time, and in fact there was Agent Po, sipping from a large glass of wine and looking quite pleased with herself. Wufei’s eyes kept flicking across to Duo, and Oliver got the impression he was trying to keep the others away from his brother.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There were two more figures, who Oliver didn’t recognise, until he did recognise them, and his heart dropped. He felt Cait’s hand grip his tighter convulsively at the same time, before she released it to wipe her palm on her skirt, and he surreptitiously did the same on his trousers. The handsome man with sunshine-blonde hair turned and smiled warmly at him, walking across the room to greet them, hand outstretched, followed by the petite woman with her wheat-gold hair pulled into a loose chignon. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You must be Oliver! And Caitlin! It’s wonderful to meet you both, I’m so pleased you could make it,” said Quatre Winner, as he shook their hands firmly, his face open and warm, but his eyes flicking over them and assessing them with his bright, keen gaze. He was clearly looking for something, although what it was Oliver wasn’t entirely sure. “You may know my wife, Relena?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Vice Foreign Minister shook their hands too, with the practiced ease of a politician used to making everyone feel welcome. Neither of them betrayed any of the confusion or curiosity that Oliver had encountered with everyone since meeting Duo, they were consummate professionals.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re sorry it was such a convoluted way to get you here,” Relena said, turning and guiding them further into the room. “Unfortunately, given the work that Duo does, it’s important that he isn’t seen consorting with Quatre or I, both for his safety and ours, and despite our best efforts we are…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Under constant scrutiny,” Quatre finished for her with a laugh. He poured two large glasses of wine from the decanter on a side table and passed them across. “Please don’t worry about driving,” he added, when Oliver demurred. “We’ve made arrangements for you to be taken back to your hotel later, and a situation like this is always better when there’s a little alcohol to help break the ice.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Well a truer word had never been spoken, Oliver thought, as he glanced around and saw five other pairs of eyes watching him intently. He took the glass, took a mouthful. It was good. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before he realised what had happened, Caitlin had been swept away by Relena and he was being guided into a chair on the far side of the room from her, Quatre introducing him formally to Heero and Trowa who had drifted over to take up positions in chairs nearby. He got the sense he was being hemmed in. Relena was offering to show Caitlin around the house and whisking her out of the door, while Wufei stood awkwardly next to Duo behind the group of them. Oliver raised his eyebrows at them - what was going on? He felt like a kid being spoken to by his girlfriend’s Dad, not having a dinner party with his brother’s friends. Duo shrugged sympathetically whilst Wufei pressed his lips together and just tilted his head to the side in an apology. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Agent Po - Sally - had rearranged herself to get more comfortable. She’d acquired a bowl of potato chips, and seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. What was she even doing here? What were any of them doing here? How on earth did </span>
  <em>
    <span>Duo</span>
  </em>
  <span> get on close terms with two of the most powerful people in the Earth Sphere? And why were they looking at </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span> like he was some kind of miscreant, when Duo was the one who could casually break into cars and pick pockets? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He felt like he’d fallen through the looking glass. The large mouthful of wine he took couldn’t make things any worse, he figured. Maybe things would start to make a bit more sense if he was drunk. It was like Opposites Day.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They hadn’t eaten dinner yet, but Oliver felt like he had drunk a lot. It was a long while before Caitlin and Relena reappeared, and Caitlin looked like she’d been plied with booze even as they toured the house, and she was decanted into a chair and Sally offered her some crisps. Meanwhile, Oliver had been subjected to one of the most rigorous examinations he had ever experienced, all being faced by the sunniest smile and brightest blue eyes, flanked by one iron-clad glare and one eerily impassive gaze.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He remembered meeting Heero and Trowa briefly at the HQ, but it had been a matter of seconds. What could he have done to upset them in that period of time? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo wasn’t helping, but Oliver got the impression that he had been told not to interfere, because every time he looked like he was drifting too close, one of the flanking pairs of eyes turned to him and he heaved an irritated sigh and adjusted his bored roaming of the room away from where Oliver was sat. Wufei sat beside Trowa, staring straight ahead and stiff. He was listening to everything, but not moving, or intervening.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was too much. He’d covered his childhood, his extended family, his education, his career, his hobbies, and his parents’ backgrounds - with particular interest in his father and his military career. Was he still in contact with people he served with? Did he still subscribe to any of the ideals of the Alliance? Was he happy with current politics?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I… I need to use the loo,” Oliver said, finally, bursting to his feet. “Where…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Out the door, down the hall, second on the left,” Quatre said gesturing towards the door they’d come in through, standing as well. “Would you like me to show you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No! No, I’m grand, thanks.” He needed space on his own. Away from scrutiny, and room to let his head stop swaying a little. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The man in the suit in the hallway sat on a small sofa by the front door, reading a book, although he looked up as Oliver clomped out of the room, and his gaze tracked him all the way out of sight. Oliver tried to stare him out until he was around the corner, but managed to stumble into the wall, which rather ruined the effect.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a predictably elegant bathroom, sleek and understated but clearly expensive. He poked around at some of the pots and potpourri around the place, then splashed his face with cold water, cupping his hands together and slurping down some mouthfuls of it to try and counteract the booze in his system before patting his face dry. He was beginning to think this whole thing had been set up to interrogate him, but he couldn’t understand why - what would Duo’s friends have against him? He’d done nothing to any of them - hell, he’d even worked on a couple of cases for both Quatre and Relena in the past, as part of wider teams and campaigns they’d been championing. And now he was working with the Preventers! </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Well. He wasn’t going to let them play their games. Some fresh air would clear his head, and he’d try and wrestle back control of the situation. Marching with purpose back into the hall, he decided he wasn’t going to go back past the henchman by the front door, and instead he’d take the patio back to the dining room - they’d had French doors opening out onto it, opened to let the evening breeze in. He’d find another way out to them and come back in that way. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After heading back into the corridor, he surreptitiously tried various doors until he found another room with a door out onto the patio, unlocking it and stepping outside quietly. The sheer silence outside was overwhelming. They were so far from anywhere. Aside from the lights behind him, it was dark for miles, save the occasional car headlights passing in the far distance. There were a few tiny clusters of lights way into the darkness, and he supposed somewhere on the other side of the building he might be able to see Brussels. But looking straight up, if he stepped forward and away from the lights of the house, the sky was clear and the stars were bright, unpolluted by any other significant light sources.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stepped off the patio and down onto the grass, taking a moment to bask in the silence and the pleasant evening breeze. He took some deep breaths, tried to find his equilibrium. Was this how Duo had felt at their house? Discombobulated and uncomfortable? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>God it was awful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He always thought that just gathering family around you and working through it together would get you through anything, but it wasn’t working. Duo didn’t want to be gathered up with his family, and Cait was frankly not loving the idea of gathering Duo close in the first place. And Duo’s… family? They didn’t seem to like him much for some reason. Even Quatre Winner, the nicest man in the Sphere, somehow didn’t like him. This went against everything he’d been taught growing up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo was his </span>
  <em>
    <span>brother</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Okay, so he didn’t quite feel like his brother yet, but that’s the sort of thing that happens when you don’t know each other. They just needed to be submersed in each other a bit longer. A little more exposure to Oliver, to Oliver’s family, he’d fit right in. They’d love him, enfold him, and he’d feel like he’d always been there sooner than not. That’s how it had worked with every husband and wife, every straggler and stray they’d gained over the years. Duo just had to give it a chance. Then they could both stop feeling like crap about it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The cool night air was helping him feel a little better though. Right up until a strong hand clapped heavily on his shoulder, making him jump out of his skin, and a deep voice rumbled behind him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think it’s time to go back inside now, Mr. McGann.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded mutely, pressing his lips closed to hold in the terrified burp which the giant man had scared out of him. Oliver allowed himself to be gently guided - near enough carried by the scruff of his neck - back along the patio and into the room he’d started out in, through the open patio doors. Everyone looked up, mildly surprised to see him returning from a different direction, escorted by a giant man, like a child caught trying to bunk off school. Caitlin shot him a look that said he was going to get a telling-off later. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Oliver,” she laughed, trying to defuse the potential incident ahead of time, looking after him like she always did. “I didn’t realise you were at the wandering stage already. Maybe we should eat before we have any more wine?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you for showing me the way back,” Oliver said, twisting out of Rashid’s grip and holding out his hand to shake, which Rashid did after a pointed second of hesitation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll let the kitchen know you’re ready to eat,” he rumbled, looking to Quatre for confirmation and getting a smile and a nod in return. He brushed past Oliver and towards the far doors, meanwhile Duo appeared at his side, facing away from the rest of the room and bringing his drink to his face as he muttered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The fuck was that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was just getting some air,” Oliver shot back out of the corner of his mouth, trying not to let his smile drop, watching as everyone else made their way to the table and started settling into seats. “You know I should get access to a lawyer if I’m being interrogated, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You </span>
  <em>
    <span>are</span>
  </em>
  <span> a lawyer.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s beside the point you-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oliver, come sit beside me,” Quatre called with a smile that could have been on the baby Jesus himself, and Oliver didn’t trust it one little bit. “We can carry on our conversation.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Be right there,” Oliver said with a wave, before tilting his head back to Duo and continuing in a harsh whisper. “And later you can fuckin’ tell me how you can sit down to dinner with Quatre Winner and the Queen of the World but you can’t behave like a normal person at a pissing family barbecue.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This wasn’t my damn idea,” Duo hissed, turning closer into him and jabbing him in the soft bit of his bicep just underneath his shoulder, right where it would hurt, with two fingers. The accuracy was unerring and it pissed Oliver off further. “I warned you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like hell you did,” Oliver hissed back, thumping him back, trying to give him a dead arm. “I’ve been on a bloody goose chase this evening ‘cause of you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you two coming to join us?” Trowa asked, but they weren’t paying attention as Duo shoved Oliver back in response to the thump, and Oliver pushed again and the next thing they knew it had escalated into a scuffle of pushing and shoving and Cait started shouting at him to stop it, and Sally seemed to be cheering them on - although who she was rooting for wasn’t clear. Oliver thought he was doing alright until Duo managed to get him in some kind of impossible arm-lock which was agonising whenever he tried to wriggle out of it, so he was reduced to trying to swing his legs to try and kick his brother in the shins.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Will you fuckin’ </span>
  <em>
    <span>quit it</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Duo demanded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Make me!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m trying, believe me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh god,” said Caitlin, from across the room, and twisting a little he could see her stood up with the heels of her hands pressed against her temples and a look of agonised humiliation on her face. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry. He’s not normally like this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Relena said, sounding cheerful, sitting still relaxed in her chair and drinking her wine. “There’s usually a scuffle of some kind when they all get together. It’s a novelty that someone else is involved.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay,” Duo snapped, loudly, clearly having finally had enough. “Y’all need to </span>
  <em>
    <span>calm down</span>
  </em>
  <span> about this. Yeah, okay, me and Oliver look alike, and we’re related, but we’re basically complete strangers otherwise. Pump the fuckin’ brakes, alright?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He released Oliver, pushing him out of his space as he did so, so that when Oliver straightened up, circling his shoulder and wrist gingerly, Duo was well out of thumping range and looking very pissed. Oliver opened his mouth to speak but his brother jabbed a finger at him, cutting him off.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t you start,” Duo continued, volume rising. “We’re related, but we ain’t family yet, and you need to slow the fuck down on all this. You’re pissin’ off me, and you’re really pissin’ off your wife. You keep sayin’ we’re gonna do this slowly, but next week you’ll be invitin’ me to someone’s fuckin’ First Communion, and I ain’t havin’ it. And </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> -” Here, Duo rounded on the other people at the table, specifically Quatre, but his gaze roamed across to Heero and Trowa as well. “He ain’t movin’ in with me for fuck’s sake. The only one he’s a danger to is himself. His friends are assholes -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“An’ one day he’s probably gonna fall in the canal at the end of his garden and drown, but he ain’t here for you, he wasn’t here for me until we fuckin’ walked into each other. None of this was planned, nothin’ here is sinister, ‘cept for the fact that every time I look at him I just see exactly what I coulda looked like if my life had gone right so maybe we could just </span>
  <em>
    <span>stop</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that he stomped over to the drinks cabinet, poured himself a generous measure of scotch and knocked it back neat, before doing it again. The third time he filled it up he just stood there, back to the room, clearly waiting for someone else to make the next move. Oliver tried to avoid eye contact with anyone, feeling equal parts hurt by the assertion that he and Duo were strangers, and uncomfortable from Duo’s last statement. That was the guilt he’d been trying not to feel, trying not to think about because he didn’t owe anyone excuses for his life, but looking at Duo it had been hard not to think that perhaps that’s how he could have turned out if his life had gone </span>
  <em>
    <span>wrong</span>
  </em>
  <span>, so hearing it echoed the other way left a nasty taste in his mouth.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a long, awkward silence, there was a loud clapping sound, and he looked up to see Sally stood on her chair giving a standing ovation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love dinner with you guys,” she said, as she stepped down and scooped up her wine, holding it in a toast. “It’s never, ever boring. Cheers!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you okay?” Wufei asked, closing the door to Duo’s room quietly behind him after dinner. Oliver and Caitlin had been taken home, but everyone else was staying with Quatre, although Duo had seriously considered just making a hike for it over the fields. It was a mild night, he’d be home before dawn.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Things had calmed down after his outburst. Sally had always had a knack for breaking the tension by pointing out when everyone was being ridiculous, and Quatre and Relena were nothing if not consummate hosts. Oliver had seemed a bit subdued afterwards though, and Duo couldn’t blame him. He hadn’t missed Relena taking Caitlin aside and slipping a card with her personal contact details into her hands, along with an assurance that they were both very welcome, and apologising for any overzealous caution which might have made the evening uncomfortable.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Heero and Trowa had watched them both leave from the window, the terrible twosome, faces impassive. Clearly Oliver had passed whatever test Quatre had deemed necessary, and Trowa and Heero were happy to accept that. They didn’t feel they had to apologise though, evidently. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I dunno, man,” Duo said, eventually answering Wufei’s question. He sat on the bench at the end of his bed, elbows on his knees, hands dangling limply between his legs. “I don’t feel like anythin’s been alright since I got back. Like I can’t find what my normal is.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why the decompression period is so important.” Wufei moved past him to perch on the stool by the dressing table - a dressing table! Was there a more unnecessary piece of furniture? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nah, it’s more than that. It’s Oliver and everything.” He rubbed a hand over his face, his fingers cool where his face felt hot and awkward. “Did I tell you what happened in the meeting with Une the other day?” When Wufei shook his head Duo sighed through his nose and forced himself to say the words which had been circling through his head ever since. “No matter where I work in the world - I’m puttin’ Oliver and his family in danger, because he looks like me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Une said that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, she said that was ridiculous, </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> said that to make a point but - he’s right isn’t he?” He looked up at Wufei for confirmation, but got the expected Chang Poker Face. God damn, that man wouldn’t be drawn on anything if he didn’t want to be. “I’ve never had anyone at risk ‘cause of what I could do, not who couldn’t handle themselves. But there’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>kids</span>
  </em>
  <span>… But I’m fuckin’ good at what I do. I can do what other people can’t - ‘cept I could do it because I didn’t have anyone they could use as leverage against me, and now I do. What the fuck am I s’posed to do?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Silence. Wufei closed his eyes briefly, looked as though he was trying to talk himself out of saying something. Or talk himself into it?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe,” Wufei said slowly, “this is an opportunity for you to think about your plans for life long-term.” He looked at Duo cautiously, and continued when no response was readily forthcoming. “You’ve worked mission-to-mission your whole life. Perhaps it’s time to start thinking… long-term, and about your life outside of work.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What life?” Duo asked, his voice sour. Quatre had Relena, even Heero had Trowa. Wufei was the only other one of them who hadn’t paired off and he was so antisocial that he seemed perfectly happy that way. What was the point of Duo trying to move forward if the only person he’d want to do it with wasn’t interested anyway? So that left Duo, there, on his own. Slowly boxed out by the only people he’d really trusted in his adult life anyway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fuck it, of course he was lonely but he didn’t want a damn pity party over it. Anyone else who’d got close to him died, so he wasn’t going to let anyone close. He’d done so </span>
  <em>
    <span>well</span>
  </em>
  <span> but now the fucking universe was getting revenge on him by forcing a whole unit of innocents on him. It wasn't fair. Or right. And it wasn’t even what he wanted. He’d never asked for a family, he’d never asked for his friends to be replaced with the circus-mirror version of himself. He’d wanted </span>
  <em>
    <span>one</span>
  </em>
  <span> thing and that was off-limits.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei looked away, reached out to straighten the knick-knacks on the dressing table, setting them at right angles to each other.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The life you could make for yourself,” he said, quietly. “If you wanted to try.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And if I don’t want to?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t answer that. He just sat still and looked at his hands. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Much love to kangofu_cb, best beta and supportive friend forever.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Seven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The representatives from the public prosecutor’s office came on Monday morning, an older barrister, Noellia Gomez, who was brusque and efficient, her steel grey hair pulled back in a neat plait with no-nonsense glasses over sharp brown eyes. Her assistant was a young solicitor called Mariemaia Barton, tall and slim, with a shock of red hair styled in a chic bob, and bright blue eyes that took in everything. Oliver liked the pair of them immediately - they got straight down to business as soon as they arrived, and frankly it was a relief to be working with people who seemed to be completely removed from his entire personal situation. Both women had looked him up and down at first meeting, and clearly deemed him fit for purpose, and that was that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The weekend had been strange and tense. Caitlin couldn’t quite get over her distrust of Duo, but was begrudgingly in agreement with his statement that everyone was taking things far too fast, and it was getting a bit much. And she was annoyed that she agreed with him. She was even more annoyed at Oliver for being involved in causing a scene at a dinner party, and he had to point out she hadn’t been there for what had essentially been an interrogation. Not that he could point to exactly what made it so – every question had been polite, all the manners impeccable, and the whole thing handled gently and deftly; he just hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that he was being cross-examined against some sort of file, like they were trying to catch him out on some detail or other. There’d also been the strange disconnect between Caitlin’s mistrust of Duo and her support for Relena – “I voted for her,” she kept saying, in disbelief – and Oliver was very aware that he couldn’t just erase any doubts she had by confirming again that he was a Preventer, not someone shady who seemed to have conned his way into association with pillars of the community. Or perhaps that people she had respected and trusted were in fact rotten somewhere at their core. He hated seeing his wife doubt her convictions. He hated being stuck in this stupid situation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So yes. Doing what he was actually good at, working through the law and shutting down all his private and personal issues, that was a relief. This bland meeting room was entirely devoid of personality or anything that could remind him of anything other than the job at hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He tried to tamp down the bitterness that he was having to brief other people on what was supposed to be his case, his chance to work on something big and do some real good. It might not have seemed fair, but in the end the important thing was that the bad guys got put behind bars. That’s why he was really here.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t join them until after lunch, having left Oliver the morning to get the new recruits up to speed. That meant that Oliver had a clear view of the expression on Mariemaia’s face when she saw him - the businesslike mask of a pleasant non-smile evaporated completely. There was a smile of absolute pleasure to see him, those giant eyes crinkling at the corners as she gripped his hand tightly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s good to see you again,” she said, and Oliver was slightly surprised by the warmth in her voice. “You need to stop avoiding me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I assure you, it’s not personal,” Wufei said, and allowed Mariemaia to introduce him to Noellia. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was interesting. That was very interesting. What a welcome distraction from his own problems, and a wonderful opening into revealing some more about the mystery of Wufei Chang. They’d been working together for weeks now and he knew very little about this man who’d been helping him, aside from that brief flicker of </span>
  <em>
    <span>whatever</span>
  </em>
  <span> when he had clamped down on Oliver’s assumption that he and Duo were together. Hell, he’d spent the night in the guy’s flat and still knew nothing about him - the one thing he thought he’d known was apparently wrong.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Deciding to poke the bear, he brought it up later that day, after the two women had disappeared and Wufei was accompanying him out of the back door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She likes you,” Oliver told him, stepping out first as Wufei gestured him ahead. He was still getting the hang of the routes Duo had shown him, so he’d had a guide the last few nights. The back alleys ranged from clean and spacious, with room to pass between, to comparatively cramped with gutters running down the middle, crowded with bins. It wasn’t an inspiring route, or a hugely memorable one.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who does?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mariemaia.” Oliver grinned, looking sideways at the other man, trying to see if he was getting a reaction. He wasn’t, he was instead met with mild bafflement. “She </span>
  <em>
    <span>like </span>
  </em>
  <span>likes you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you a child?” Wufei asked, wrinkling his nose in disdain, moving through the alley and avoiding all the mysterious puddles and piles deftly without even looking, as Oliver had to gingerly pick his way around them and watch his feet. “Of course she doesn’t.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She </span>
  <em>
    <span>does</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Oliver insisted. “She fair lit up when she saw you, her wee face sparkled.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei snorted, and didn’t dignify that with a response, instead pausing to let Oliver catch up before making his way across the road and down a mirroring back street. The smells down these routes were almost universally unpleasant, and the silence meant they were more noticeable, so he decided to press the issue.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think you’d make a cute couple. She’s not that much younger than you, and clearly got a lot going for her. And redheads! Everyone loves a redhead. That’s a sign of good Irish stock.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s not interested in me that way, nor I in her. We are simply old… acquaintances who respect each others’ abilities and skills. She’s always been precociously smart, and a talented orator.” A pause. “And she’s not Irish.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You should ask her out,” Oliver insisted, determined to get something out of his companion. “You never know, I think she’d be into it, and sometimes friends can make the best partners.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re not friends, and aside from the fact that we have no interest in each other, this relationship you’re trying to mastermind is doomed for two very significant reasons.” Wufei glanced across at Oliver who was trotting beside him, clearly trying to keep pace to watch his reactions, and put a heavy emphasis on the next words, as if these would end the conversation. “The first of which being that she is Une’s daughter.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Huh, that was unexpected. They didn’t look much alike, but Oliver supposed he could see it a little in her mannerisms - the way she stood, that handshake.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’d be nothing if you liked her,” he said, waving it off.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Which I don’t.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s the second reason? It’s gotta be a lot better.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I killed her father.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That caused Oliver to stumble to a standstill and stare after Wufei, who walked a few steps further before pausing to look back at him, face impassive. He supposed he knew that the odds of Wufei having killed someone were… well he </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> a Preventer, and an active field agent working on nasty stuff. Oliver had seen the casualty report for the case they were going through. Objectively it had always been likely that some of those bodies were because of Wufei. But he’d never really thought about it in the very real sense that the quiet, scholarly, and precise man sat beside him could have actually taken a life. Staring at him now, he was trying to fit the two images over each other, and the cognitive dissonance was astounding.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei stood waiting patiently, no single part of him moving – perhaps that should have been a clue. The way he held himself, and moved his body. Nothing was a wasted movement, nothing was done without intent. There was  confidence and control in everything he did. Oliver had just read it as… shyness. Pegged him as quiet, not an energetic or flappy sort of person. But perhaps it was more than that, as those eyes stayed focused on him for a very long time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve got questions,” Wufei said, finally, probably because he was bored of standing and being gawped at in a back alley.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You get one.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver couldn’t quite help the cheeky smile that pulled at his mouth. “Three’s traditional.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For a split-second he thought he’d pushed his luck too far, after all he didn’t really know this man very well and this was quite a personal thing, but then Wufei’s lips quirked the tiniest bit in response and he gave a small nod.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Three, then. But only three.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Nodding, Oliver chewed his lip thoughtfully before posing his first question, picking his way across to catch up with Wufei.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why?” It seemed like a good place to start, Wufei looked away and began to start walking again, glancing over his shoulder only momentarily to check Oliver was following.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s a very large question,” Wufei said, several paces later, which surprised Oliver because he was mostly expecting a brief overview of a criminal case, because what other reason would there have been for it? It just seemed surprising that Une had ever been involved with someone wrapped up in the sort of crime that had not just involved the Preventers, but some kind of shoot-out. “A lot of it was that I hated him. I hated him so deeply, but at the same time I also saw him as a way to free myself. He was responsible for an attack on my home which killed many people, including - including people important to me. I saw that as my failing as much as his, because I was too weak to stop him. I thought that defeating him would prove my worth, and I pursued that goal with extreme prejudice, but…” He paused, his mouth twisted in a slightly bitter smile. “I wasn’t supposed to come out the other side either. He was supposed to kill me too, give me a glorious end in battle so I wouldn’t have to face the consequences of my earlier inadequacies.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>What the actual fuck, Oliver thought, doing his best to keep his face bland, his courtroom expression getting the biggest workout it had ever had. He’d expected a quick rundown of a criminal enterprise, and instead he got a full on revenge tragedy. He kept quiet, waiting to see if there was anything else to come, but that seemed to be it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Does… Une…?” he started, unsure quite how to phrase it, but Wufei seemed to grasp what he was trying to say and nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She knows. She saw. Don’t imagine I left a grieving widow and child,” he added, clearly noticing the shock. “Yes she grieved, but there was no family there. Mariemaia isn’t her biological daughter, and she goes by her mother’s maiden name. And Une herself - she understood that war is messy. She did plenty herself that she’s not proud of.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The </span>
  <em>
    <span>war</span>
  </em>
  <span> - but you were only - wait, no,” Oliver interrupted himself quickly. “That’s not my question.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve got one left,” Wufei said, although he looked a little amused by Oliver’s fluster.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How many?” Oliver blurted, and got at least some satisfaction at seeing the surprise flicker over Wufei’s face, before feeling bad at how utterly crass the question was. “No, I mean - ”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Wufei interrupted him quietly, firmly. “I understand why you want to know, and I think you’ll keep wondering if you don’t ask. But I hope you’ll understand if I don’t give you an exact figure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver nodded mutely, trying to ignore the flush on his cheeks from shame, even while he was curious, genuinely wanted to know the answer. It had been strange enough to think Wufei had killed people in the line of duty for the Preventers, those deaths seeming to be accidental and undesirable in the grand scheme of things, in the pursuit of a peaceful apprehension. The idea that Wufei had purposefully killed someone was… huge and heavy. It was almost like he didn’t recognise the face he was looking at.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you even know?” Oliver asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” Wufei assured him. He stopped walking, met Oliver’s eyes dead on. “And I can assure you the total is far, far higher than you’re imagining. Mariemaia’s father may have been my end goal, but there were many before, and many after.” He reached out and placed his hand on Oliver’s shoulder, gripping it, as though trying to keep Oliver from keeling over. “I’m not telling you this because I’m proud of it, far from it. I’m telling you this so you can understand that perhaps some peoples’ lives were more impacted by the war at an earlier age, and that you cannot measure people by your own experience.” Releasing him, Wufei turned and continued walking, and called over his shoulder, “and so you can understand why I could never be in a relationship with Mariemaia.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” Oliver said, weakly, trying to process the exact content of the words, “that and you’re in love with Duo.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And finally, </span>
  <em>
    <span>finally</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Oliver got to see Wufei as wrong-footed as he felt. Watched the other man take a step and slightly miss the ground when he put his foot down, stumbling a little before he recovered and turned to glare at Oliver.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are, though, aren’t you?” he challenged. “That’s why you’ve been so nice to me. That’s why you’ve been shadowing Duo since I arrived and managing him, making excuses for him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a flush over Wufei’s face now, and Oliver wondered if that was shame too - the expression on his face seemed to suggest that. Well, at least he wasn’t the only one.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why aren’t you together?” Oliver insisted. “Is he straight?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t want to talk about this,” Wufei bit out. “You’ve had your three questions.” He turned and tried to start marching off, but Oliver grabbed his arm and tried to hold him in place - damn, the guy was stronger than he realised - succeeded in halting him briefly and getting a glower. “This isn’t any of your business.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I find it really bizarre that you’re more comfortable talking to me about people you’ve killed than you are about your love life,” Oliver said. “What is wrong with you? Love is wonderful and instead you’ve bricked it all up and pretended it isn’t there. Duo gets the most aggressive when faced with the prospect of letting anyone in too.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it any wonder, then, that we’re not together?” Wufei asked, his voice icy cold, as he reached down and prised the hand from his jacket sleeve. “Is it any wonder I have decided to keep my feelings to myself? Or that I’ll ask you to do the same?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver had never heard anyone’s voice turn so dangerous, and it startled him. He fell back a step, and Wufei looked away, trying to get himself under control.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The hotel is down there, first left and second right,” he said brusquely. “I assume you’ll be able to find it on your own from here?” Oliver nodded mutely, and Wufei stalked off back the way they had come, with a muttered goodbye as he passed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stood still for a long moment, trying to shake the feeling that voice had invoked in him, and trying not to think for how many people that had been the last thing they’d heard. It was only once he got to his room, having made the rest of the journey in a bit of a haze, that something clicked into place in his brain, and he thought about how many young redheads called Mariemaia, associated with a family called Barton, had lost their fathers during the war. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then he tried very hard not to think about it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Meredith Fox was not happy to be in Brussels. She was not happy to be in Europe. She wasn’t supposed to be in Europe, she was supposed to be in Canada, getting some time off after this tedious work trip. Instead, her flight had been diverted due to staff illness and the airline had been unable to find any crew to relieve the ones who had taken ill until the morning. And they had the gall to stick her in this budget hotel for the night, like they were doing her a favour. The only thing they had done was maybe go two points up from the very cheapest hotels, so she had a “real” bathroom (barely), and there was a bar downstairs.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bar was where she was heading, after being let down by the fairly feeble excuse for a shower. She’d put on a low cut top, tight jeans, and was looking forward to making some questionable decisions with a large glass of wine or several. It had proven hard to get any kind of thrill since the Preventers had broken up her… extracurricular activities last year. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She knew she shouldn’t be too bitter - she’d been extremely lucky to get clear and be able to live a free life. She knew only a handful of them had managed to get off scot free. Most had ended up arrested and facing prison terms of varying lengths, depending on their perceived importance and the plea deals they struck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Meredith had been lucky. She’d not been there on the day they raided the plant, and someone had managed to get a message to her to warn her to stay away. Fortunately her passport had still been in her maiden name, so she’d skipped town and found a new life in Canada. Keeping her head down until the heat died down. Living a normal life, working a normal job. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And god, it was dull. She hadn’t even been able to touch her stash account in case it was being monitored, so she </span>
  <em>
    <span>needed</span>
  </em>
  <span> to work. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now that she thought about it, she had a vague memory of hearing that some of the runners might have been released already - Sam, maybe, or Dutch. Maybe she should get a burner phone, try dropping them a line.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Almost as though she had summoned the ghosts of her past, she stopped in her tracks midway across the lobby as her mind belatedly processed the man who had just brushed past her towards the elevator. Spinning on the spot, she watched the tall figure in the grey suit press the button and wait for the doors to ding open. Waited for him to turn around. Surely it couldn’t be him. He’d cut all his hair off. He </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> wore suits.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Elevator doors had never opened so slowly, but finally they did, and he stepped inside. It was like the world had slowly right down as he turned around and looked right past her, but it was him. It was definitely him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe she needed to stay in Brussels a little longer after all.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Eight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>
    <span>Six years earlier</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The television was on, but it was muted, which meant Duo heard perfectly when the front door opened, and the soft, purposeful footsteps made their way down the hallway, and the ‘snick’ of the latch on the door to where he was as it opened. And the sigh of what was certainly disappointment from the doorway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, Duo.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The light was flicked on, and he squeezed his eyes shut as the darkness was banished and his pupils protested. He heard movement coming closer, and raised a hand to his brow to shield from the harshness of the light, squinting as his eyes adjusted and he could see fully the portrait of disappointment that he was being presented with as Wufei stood over him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d obviously come straight from the engagement party, and maybe it was the wine, or the beer, or the whisky, or the vodka, or… whatever this shit was he was drinking, but it came in a square bottle and tasted like honey. Maybe it was all of those things, but Duo felt like Wufei had never looked so good in his whole damn life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Super.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You didn’t need to get all gussied up for li’l ol’ me,” he drawled, and maybe the slur was a little real. He had drunk a lot today. As evidenced by the bottles which had at one point been lined up in a neat row on his coffee table, but were now scattered all over the floor on the other side of his coffee table, some in pieces, from where he’d spent some time taking pot shots at them using a rubber band and a margarine tub of odd screws, nails, and washers he’d found under the sink. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re a mess,” Wufei said flatly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You ain’t,” Duo said with a saucy wink, raising his glass in a toast. He nearly never saw Wufei in tailoring. It was either uniforms or casual. His formalwear tended to be traditional Chinese silks, which flowed with his movements. Tonight he’d chosen to visit Duo in a tuxedo that fitted him like something sinful. The black material was tailored to perfection, highlighting the strength in his shoulders and chest, but keeping his lines compact and tight. He looked tall, and crisp, the white shirt and bow tie - fuck the bow tie. It was still tied, tight and perfect at his collar. Of course there wasn’t an errant wrinkle to be seen. The only betrayal that he was human was the single strand of hair that had escaped his immaculate ponytail and was drifting down the side of his face, begging to be tucked behind an ear. “Have a drink with me, handsome?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think you’ve had enough.” Wufei reached to take the glass from his hand, and Duo jerked it out of reach.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve got some catchin’ up to do then,” he said, trying to hook the bottle from the floor, but that Wufei beat him to. “Come on, we’re celebratin’ today, aren’t we? The Prince and Princess of Pacifism are finally gettin’ hitched! I’ll drink to that!” And down went the rest of the liquid in the glass.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You weren’t at the party.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I sent a gift.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. They were very touched by the hideous blue jewel-encrusted panther. It goes with nothing. And I suppose by extension goes with literally everything.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo chuckled richly, delighted with himself. “Well, what do you get the couple who has everything?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei sat on the end of the sofa, and Duo moved his feet out of the way obligingly, although he was disappointed to see the bottle of honey whatever end up on the floor on the far side of the sofa. He’d have to scramble over Wufei to get to it. If he did that he might just stop. Untie that bow tie, wrinkle the suit, pull all of the hair free from the ponytail. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was drunk. He wasn’t drunk enough.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You could have come you know,” Wufei said finally. “They’d barred the press, confiscated phones and cameras. You’d have been alright.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?” Duo raised a sardonic eyebrow at him, and then tossed his phone across the sofa. It was caught deftly, Wufei’s reflexes not dulled at all, and Duo almost certainly telegraphing all over the place. “They didn’t do a very good job.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The other man scrolled through the feed of photographs on social media, already leaking to be dissected by the press. Not many, but more than there should have been. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Plenty to show why Duo had been right not to go. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How come you’re in the penguin suit, anyhow?” he asked, prodding a muscular thigh with his foot, trying to distract and get rid of the displeased and melancholy expression that had appeared on Wufei’s face as he’d looked at the pictures. Somehow it was easier to deal with disappointment directed at </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span>; he expected that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wanted to be less obvious in a crowd, so when I slipped out early I wouldn’t be missed.” The phone was set on the table with precision, adjusted until it was at right angles to the edge. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The rager still goin’, huh? Was Lena doing a keg stand when you left? Tha’s always when it starts to get messy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why are you doing this to yourself?” Wufei demanded, turning to level him with that direct gaze. Smouldering? There was probably some smoulder there. A little of the Bond. The name’s Wufei. Chang Wufei.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What else am I s’posed to do when two of my best friends - my family - announce they’re gettin’ married? When they get hitched and I know I can’t go?” Duo snapped. “Fuck off with that bullshit, you know this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The other undercover agents all manage to lead normal lives, you know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The other undercover agents ain’t as good as I am.” He set his glass on the coffee table, and just to spite Wufei he missed the coaster and put it at a random position, not equidistant with the corner or edges. He possibly put it down harder than he should have, the sound was startlingly loud.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Duo…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And the other undercover agents aren’t friends with the most beloved couple in the whole Earth Sphere,” he continued, speaking more loudly to stop Wufei interrupting as he curled his legs up into himself and folded his arms, making himself a defensive ball of booze and anger, letting his tongue carry on regardless. “They’re loved by the capitalists because they’re both filthy rich, they’re loved by the socialists because they overpay tax and push for greater social support initiatives. They’re loved by the left because they’re pacifists, looking to change the world for the better; they’re loved by the right because they’re old money from good, established families. They’re loved by the anarchists because they fought to overthrow an oppressive regime and bring in a new era; and they’re loved by the fascists because they look like the mother and father of the next Aryan nation -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s enough!” Wufei barked, and Duo snapped his mouth closed. Maybe he had gone a little far on that one. “That’s enough,” he repeated, quieter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Point is, ain’t no camera in the world not gonna be watchin’ that weddin’, so ain’t no way I can be there,” Duo muttered. “It wouldn’t be safe for them. So woohoo, we saved the world, and we keep saving the world, but I don’t get to enjoy it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a pause, Wufei pressed his lips together firmly and shook his head. He stood up and headed around the coffee table to start gathering up the detritus in the trash can next to the TV. He clearly wanted to say something, he was clearly stopping himself from saying it, and that needled Duo. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No what?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei straightened up and sighed through his nose, broken glass and empty bottles rattling in the trash can. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I’m not going to have this argument with you again.” He turned and walked to the kitchenette, setting the garbage on the floor by the sink, and Duo took advantage of his back being turned to dive across the couch and grab the bottle of honey shit and pour the rest of the bottle into his glass. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he looked up, Wufei was watching him and the judgement was clear. He took a big, defiant mouthful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just say it,” he said, after he swallowed - it didn’t even burn going down any more. “You’re dying to say it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re drunk, and I’m not fighting with you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Say it</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Duo lurched to his feet, spilling his overfull drink on the floor and using his momentum to propel himself across to where Wufei stood, pushing into his space.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know exactly what I’m going to say!” Wufei grabbed Duo’s wrist and tried to wrestle the glass out of his hand. “It’s a pointless argument, because you know I’m right but you don’t want to admit it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re gonna to tell me to quit,” Duo said, bringing his other hand up and closing his fingers around Wufei’s wrist, locking the two of them together in a ridiculous struggle over a glass of liquor he didn’t even really want or like. “You’re gonna to tell me to just join the normal Preventers, that way I can have a normal life.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And </span>
  <em>
    <span>you’re</span>
  </em>
  <span> going to say that’s impossible,” the other man replied, through gritted teeth. He could easily have broken out of this hold, easily put Duo down, particularly with the state Duo was in, but he wouldn’t. He didn’t want to hurt him. Wufei was always cagey about Duo’s limits, always wary about the harm he could do, and Duo felt no guilt in abusing that for his own purposes. He used his superior height and weight to direct their scuffle, until Wufei was pressed back against the counter, cornered. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It is impossible,” Duo told him. “There’s nothin’ for me if I don’t have this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You could have whatever you damn well wanted,” Wufei snapped, eyes flashing and face starting to flush with anger. His tux was still barely rumpled. He looked magnificent. Duo wanted to punch him. “You just have to stop being so </span>
  <em>
    <span>stubborn</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s rich comin’ from you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At least I’m trying. You’re just punishing yourself.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo sneered, leaning in closer, nose-to-nose. He could smell the faint trace of champagne on Wufei’s breath, from the one obligatory glass used to toast the happy couple. “This is all self-inflicted is it? Within my power to change?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can do anything you put your mind to, you just have to want to.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fine, if that was the way Wufei thought it was going to go, Duo was willing to take a punt. Hell, what was getting his heart shredded if it meant he could prove a point? At this stage being right would be just as good as keeping his dignity intact. He pressed his face forward that extra half-inch, capturing Wufei’s lips in a bruising kiss. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was just enough time to register the sharp intake of breath from shock, the way the lips felt beneath his - surprisingly soft, probably from the shave he’d had that day - and the smell of Wufei’s aftershave, the way their bodies felt pinned together, even if their hands were still twisted in a death grip on glass of bullshit honey nonsense.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next thing he knew he was on the floor, wrists aching, and Duo was blinking muzzily up at Wufei, who was holding his glass, expression pinched and oddly taut. It wasn’t an expression Duo had seen on his face before. Something told him he was best staying where he was, and he watched as Wufei carefully poured the remains of the drink down the sink, before setting the glass on the counter with far less force than Duo had used earlier.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re drunk,” Wufei said, and there was a tension in his voice that suggested a great effort was being exerted to keep the tone even. “You’re upset, and you’re lashing out. But I suggest you go to bed and sober up. Before you do anything else that you’re going to regret in the morning.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stepped over Duo and started to head towards the front door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wufei -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you didn’t mean it,” Wufei said, pausing on the threshold, but not looking back. “It’s alright. But I just need to leave now, before this goes any further and either of us does something really stupid. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay,” Duo said quietly, and just watched numbly as Wufei disappeared through the door, and then heard the front door open and shut behind him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t move from the kitchen floor for a long while. He’d definitely proved his point alright. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Being right felt </span>
  <em>
    <span>awesome</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When Wufei opened his apartment door the next day to see Duo on the threshold, he looked understandably cautious. He only stepped aside to let him in when he spotted the two coffees and the bag of pastries which had been brought as peace offerings. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” Duo said, finally, sitting at the kitchen table and dumping sachets of sugar into his coffee, while Wufei decanted his from the paper cup into one of his own mugs and stood by the counter to cautiously sip it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How much do you remember?” Wufei asked, and Duo knew that how things went forward from here very much depended on his answer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just that I was a colossal jerk,” he said. “A towering douchebag. A gargantuan asshole.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He definitely didn’t imagine the way Wufei’s shoulders lowered slightly, the easing of the tension in his body. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, you were,” he replied. “All of the above. But I forgive you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was that. A small part of Duo’s heart sealed itself up forever, and he smiled up at his friend. If nothing else, he’d finally put that particular haunting ‘What If?’ to rest, and it was one less regret that he’d have for not ever trying a normal life. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did they really like the panther?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, of course not, it’s revolting.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Duo’s next mission took him out of contact from three months before the wedding until three months after. He saw the photographs in the papers the day afterwards.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was fine.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It would always be fine.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you for being so patient! I have loved every comment, and thank you for the kudos. I really enjoy hearing what you enjoyed about the story, and if you found me through my old stories, or found my old stories through this story, I hope you're enjoying them all.</p>
<p>Thanks again to kangofu_cb, I wouldn't be doing this without her support.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Nine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The last thing Duo expected when he left the shrink’s office that afternoon was to see Heero waiting for him in the hallway outside. He was only a few sessions into his mandatory post-mission assessments, but he was trying to appear the picture of mental health and adjustment to try and fast-track his re-deployment. That wasn’t exactly easy given everything that was going on right now. And of course Une had informed Dr. Stevenson about Oliver, so the good doctor kept prodding at that and calling Duo out whenever he tried to deflect or change the subject. What the hell was with the Preventers hiring people who were good at their jobs? </p><p>From the expression Dr. Stevenson’s assistant was wearing, Heero had been sat there for a while, and he had the look on his face that meant he was on a mission and wouldn’t be put off until it was completed. That look was turned on him the minute he cleared the doorway, and Duo contemplated heading back inside for another round with Dollar-store Freud. </p><p>“I want to talk to you,” Heero said, standing.</p><p>“Well this ain’t my waiting room,” Duo quipped. “You’ve been queueing for the doc in there.”</p><p>“Let’s go somewhere more private.” He turned and strode out of the room, not even looking over his shoulder, assuming Duo would just follow him. And, suppressing a sigh, Duo did. Just like he always did. Like he’d been doing for fifteen damn years.</p><p>Duo wouldn’t have called the fifth floor meeting room private, what with the windows for walls, but Heero pulled the blinds down and flicked all the lights on, so no-one could see them, and they could see no-one approaching either. It made Duo a bit twitchy, and clearly Heero too, as his next move was to lock the door so they couldn’t be interrupted unexpectedly. And then, in the tiny box, with no natural light, and a tiny meeting table in the middle with too many faux-leather seats squashed around it, Heero turned to him and spoke.</p><p>“I’m mad at you.” He said it in the deep, inflectionless tone he always used when he was trying to work something out, when he had planned what he wanted to say so he didn’t get flustered or confused trying to process emotions which could overwhelm him. “I’m… really mad at you.”</p><p>“‘Scuse me?” Duo looked around him, to see if anyone had heard that, even though they were alone in the room. “What did I do?”</p><p>“You didn’t tell me about Oliver,” Heero began, and Duo cut him off defensively.</p><p>“Come on man, I’d only known about him a couple of days before you-”</p><p>“And you’ve been lying,” Heero continued, as if Duo had never spoken. “You always said you don’t lie but you do, and you’ve been doing it a lot. And I thought…” He paused, a small frown wrinkling between his eyebrows as his gaze turned inwards. “I thought I wouldn’t have to try and work that sort of thing out with you."</p><p>He sounded… hurt, and that stung Duo. After Solo, Heero had been the closest thing Duo’d had to a brother. They’d been able to read each other and move together seamlessly. Heero didn’t need to read Duo, because Duo never lied, and Heero didn’t need to force himself to express more than he was comfortable with, because Duo knew him inside and out. Shoulder-to-shoulder, like they had been through the war.</p><p>Except Duo’s work took him away a lot, and Heero had someone else who could read him, who had shared his load during the war. And they’d become… more than brothers. So Heero hadn’t needed Duo so much any more. Which was fine, honestly fine, Duo was happy for him and really glad that Heero had someone to support him. To love him, who he felt safe with.</p><p>And hell, it wasn’t that Duo didn’t get on with Trowa, Trowa was a great guy. His personality meshed with Heero’s perfectly, and Duo relied on him regularly to extract him from his covers. But Heero and Trowa were a unit now, and Duo wasn’t part of that. And Quatre and Relena were a unit, which left him and Wufei. Two independent parts which worked together outside of the units, but inside the broader machine of their whole group dynamic.</p><p>“I haven’t been lying,” Duo said, his voice more subdued now that he realised he wasn’t getting chewed out.</p><p>“By omission,” Heero accused. “You said you’d be fine if Trowa and I moved in together-”</p><p>“And I am!”</p><p>“You went on mission right after you helped me move in. You got back a few weeks ago and instead of seeing you, you’ve been dodging me. You told Wufei about Oliver first -”</p><p>“<em> He </em> told <em> me </em>,” Duo insisted, again.</p><p>“And you took him with you to that barbecue.”</p><p>“Would you rather have gone? You hate crowds, and strangers, and children.” Duo studied Heero’s face and saw the twitch of muscle that showed he was right. “Wufei only got invited ‘cause Oliver knows him too - Oliver met <em> him </em> first, and Wufei was the one who warned me about him. And… who warned Oliver about me,” he added, dully. “Oliver likes him, and he seems to like Oliver. I guess they’re… friends.” Or something like that, anyway.</p><p>“But why didn’t you ask me to come when you first met him? We’re a team.” Heero’s voice was as matter-of-fact as always, but there was just that hint of confusion on his face, that slight edge to his tone that communicated his upset. “I know there’s something else,” he pressed, “what is it? Are you angry at me? You’ve just stopped talking to me and I need to understand why so I can fix it. Is it because of Trowa? I need you to tell me.”</p><p>Heero’s hands were gripping the back of one of the chairs, and his knuckles were not quite white, but getting there. The chair was creaking a little in an anxious sort of way. The furniture in this building wasn’t quite built to handle Heero’s strength; but then, very little furniture was. </p><p>“It’s not - It’s complicated,” Duo said, aware that was flimsy and hating himself. Heero hadn’t cornered him like this in years, and forced him to speak straight, answer directly, instead of deflecting with half-truths and subject changes. And damn he’d been getting away with some doozies that way lately. He couldn’t think of anything to say, his mind was racing as he tried to think of something that wouldn’t hurt his friend, wouldn’t take the joy out of the happiness he’d managed to carve himself. Because the truth was that he wasn’t entirely okay with Heero moving in with Trowa, even as he was relieved with the distance between them because the further away Trowa took Heero from him, the safer Heero would be in the long run. It still hurt. And with everything else happening, every small thing had piled up on top of it like so many little cuts, stinging so much that he couldn’t tell which one was the actual problem any more. </p><p>“I’m smart,” Heero said, dryly. “I’m sure I’ll be able to follow it.”</p><p>“You thought he was me,” Duo blurted, and then mirrored the slightly startled look on Heero’s face that <em> that </em> was what had come out.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“When you first saw Oliver, you thought he was me.” The words were coming without any seeming input from Duo’s brain, but they were true, and he felt very exposed with each one that escaped. Fuck Heero for springing this on him right after therapy, when his bullshitting bandwidth had already been tapped out.</p><p>“Out of the corner of my eye, for a split-second, because I didn’t know you had a twin so I wasn’t expecting to see him -” Heero’s tone hadn’t changed, but the speed of the words had, trying to process the issue and work out the answer, panicking a little.</p><p>“I <em> know </em> , I know, but this ain’t rational, and I felt like you were s’posed to just… know it wasn’t me. <em> You </em> of all people should’ve known. But you don’t need me anymore and that’s fine, but it felt like this just showed that I wasn’t part of your life any more. Which is how it’s supposed to be, but it felt like a low blow when I was already dealin’ with the fuckin’ mirror universe version of me.”</p><p>Pulling out the chair in front of him, Duo slumped into it and propped his elbow on the table and hiding his face in his hand. He suddenly felt exhausted. He didn’t need this right after mandated therapy. He didn’t need this, ever.</p><p>“I… don’t know what to do,” Heero confessed, standing stiffly at attention and battling whatever fight-or-flight instinct was screaming at him.</p><p>“Me either,” Duo sighed. “I’ve got no fuckin’ clue.”</p><p> </p><p>*</p><p> </p><p>The rest of the conversation had been short and stilted, but Heero hadn’t wanted to leave things at that. His mission that day had been to get the issue sorted, resolved completely, and he didn’t quite have the social understanding to see why it wasn’t going to be that easy. Instead, Duo had to reassure him that it would be okay, and they’d get back to normal, had to soothe Heero’s anxieties, when all Duo wanted to do was just sit with his head on the table until everything went away. </p><p>He stayed in the meeting room for a short while after Heero left - following a promise to catch up properly soon, which was extracted after some pressure and which Duo was already dreading more than a little - and only when he felt like he had managed to batter all his tangled thoughts and feelings back into their boxes did he pull the blinds up and head back out into the hallways. Time to go home, to stop peopling for the day. He was in the sort of mood better left to mope itself out in isolation.</p><p>Trotting down the hallway to the back stairs, he paused when he spotted Wufei and Oliver huddled in a corner, heads close together, talking very intently in hushed voices. Instinctively, Duo slid into an empty office nearby, leaving the door open a sliver so he could peek through and watch them. </p><p>Their heads were ducked close together, and Oliver looked like he was extremely stressed and insistent, while Wufei seemed to be trying to shush and placate him. Oliver was speaking very fast, flapping his hands in front of his face as he gestured, and Duo could only pick up one in every three words, trying to piece it together from context.</p><p>
  <em> I want you… everything… leave anything.... </em>
</p><p><em> You need to talk to Duo </em> , Wufei was saying, clearly trying to keep it together and calm Oliver down. <em> It’s not right coming from me. </em></p><p>
  <em> It’s not just about him! It’s about you too, it’s your life… Fuck…  </em>
</p><p>Duo might as well have heard that first bit, Oliver’s voice scaling up before Wufei shushed him urgently, glancing around them. He grabbed Oliver’s arm firmly and dragged them into the nearest closet, closing the door firmly. A minute passed, two, and they didn’t come out. Letting himself out of the office he was hiding in, Duo crept down the corridor like a shadow, bracing himself on the doorframe to the closet, lowering himself towards the door as close as he could without touching it, trying to hear.</p><p>Everything was muffled, he could hear barely anything. What the hell were they talking about? What had got them both so wound up? It was something to do with Duo, and Wufei, and Oliver. It was making his palms prickle and he didn’t like it, but he didn’t feel up to hanging around and asking them. Heero’s bushwhack had used up his confrontation skills for the day. </p><p>Keen not to get caught should they burst out of the door with the same haste they’d disappeared into the closet - although it had gone suspiciously quiet - he pushed himself back upright and slipped down the back stairs to freedom. Trying not to think about the two faces tilted very close together, trying not to think about the invasion of personal space Wufei was allowing, or the way Wufei’s hands had gripped Oliver’s bicep to drag him into the closet.</p><p>Trying not to think about it at all.</p><p> </p><p>*</p><p> </p><p>It had taken until about 2:00am before Oliver had given up trying to sleep and had just started googling things. </p><p>
  <em> Mariemaia Barton </em>
</p><p>There she was, all bright red hair, dark eyebrows, and big blue eyes. And there she was as a little moppet, 8 years old, in full military uniform, declaring war on Earth. And stood on stage with her, in the shadows, in the same uniform, and looking impossibly young - Wufei. “The daughter of Treize Khushrenada, although it’s not believed she ever met her father…” Oliver remembered watching the TV that Christmas Eve, sixteen years old, wondering if they were going to be at war again before they’d even got used to being at peace - and then it had been over. A matter of hours, the next morning a very thankful Christmas mass, and all forgotten in a haze of sherry and wrapping paper.</p><p>
  <em> Treize Khushrenada </em>
</p><p>Even Oliver remembered him. Remembered seeing him on TV. Remembered his voice carrying through to other rooms in the house when his parents were watching the news. He’d sounded so warm, so calm, and Oliver had found him easy to trust. His father, ex-Alliance, hadn’t been so sure, but then Milliardo Peacecraft had appeared and the boundaries shifted again...</p><p>
  <em> Treize Khushrenada death </em>
</p><p>“Treize Khushrenada was killed by Gundam 05 during a space battle toward the end of the war…” Oh, god, there was even a video, shaky and from a distance, recovered from the hard drive of one of the damaged mobile dolls during the salvage operations after. He’d clicked it before he could stop himself, had a few breathless seconds of watching the speed, the precision, the absolute intensity of the duel, before closing it hastily so he didn’t have to see…</p><p>Wufei had been fifteen years old, fighting like <em> that </em>.</p><p>
  <em> Gundam 05 </em>
</p><p>“Believed to come from the L5 colony cluster…” </p><p>“At the start of the war, categorised as the most dangerous Gundam by Alliance military personnel due to the high fatalities resulting from encounters with the Gundam, or simply just the pilot alone.”</p><p>“The gundam 05 and pilot spent some time in OZ custody on Lunar Base, alongside pilots 01 and 02, and although there are no records to detail the conditions, it was not uncommon for OZ to use torture on prisoners of war, and accounts from the time suggest that attempts were made to kill the pilots by cutting off the air to the cells. These accounts have not been substantiated, but have remained consistent across a variety of sources.”</p><p>“Following the escape from Lunar Base, Gundam 05 disappeared for some time. OZ managed to locate it on A0206. When troops went to recapture the suit, A0206 chose self-detonation rather than surrender, allowing 05 to escape, but killing everyone on the colony.”</p><p>Oliver had to pause and make some tea at that. Standing and staring blankly into the large mirror as words like “most dangerous”, “high fatalities”, “torture” and “killing everyone” swirled around his head. Hazy memories from the war were surfacing, and he was trying to mesh them with what he was reading now.</p><p>High fatalities. Shit.</p><p>
  <em> Which Gundam killed the pacifists </em>
</p><p>“20 Alliance pacifists were killed by Gundam 01, although this is believed to have been a result of misinformation and not a deliberate assassination attempt.”</p><p>
  <em> Which Gundam destroyed the colony </em>
</p><p>“The gundam used to destroy LX4067 was a variant of Gundam 01, which had previously been destroyed by OZ forces. This variant was more powerful than the original 01 model, but at the time of the colony destruction it was not piloted by pilot 01, as the pilot was in OZ custody. It is not publicly known who was piloting at the time of the colony destruction, however as warning had been received prior to the attack, the colony was evacuated and there was no loss of life. As the warning had come directly from the gundam, it is widely believed that there was never an intention to kill anyone.</p><p>Pilot 01 did eventually gain possession of the Gudam and using its increased firepower was able to destroy debris from Libra which could have caused a cataclysmic event on Earth.”</p><p>
  <em> All gundam pilots </em>
</p><p>That took him to a page with all the photographs that people attributed confidently to being of the actual gundam pilots from the war. Most were fuzzy, from a distance, or too dark to be clearly confirmed as anyone, but in the middle was one he remembered vividly - a boy with long, brown hair, face bruised and battered, hanging limply between two OZ soldiers.</p><p>When that had been flashed across the news, there had been jokes through his school that it looked just like Oliver, if you ignored the bruises. It had been stuck on his locker, and everyone had laughed about his secret identity. Oliver the Gundam Pilot.</p><p>Oliver had dressed up as him for Halloween that year. He felt a bit sick remembering it now. He’d been fifteen at the time.</p><p>They’d all been fifteen.</p><p>
  <em> Gundam 02 </em>
</p><p>“Gundam 02 possessed incredible technological abilities, particularly electronic cloaking and beam weaponry that could work under water.”</p><p>“The pilot of 02 was captured by OZ on a number of occasions, but was never held for a substantial period of time.” A number of occasions, Oliver thought, as his brain echoed “torture” back at him again, “cutting off the air”.</p><p>“Pilot 02 was exceptionally skilled, and single-handedly defeated the advanced mobile doll models Mercurius and Vayete, which were allegedly programmed with the fighting schematics for two of the other gundam pilots.” There was a video for that too, another salvaged one. Oliver watched the whole thing, since it was dolls and not people being destroyed.</p><p>Fucking hell.</p><p>The last search he conducted was one he should have done sooner, but he had been putting it off. He hadn’t wanted to believe that Tom would have been so blasé about the tragedy, hadn’t wanted to know the truth of Duo’s life.</p><p>
  <em> L2 colony church destruction </em>
</p><p>This one came with photographs. Of the church, destroyed, of the cleared debris, of the fire. And some of the church before the destruction, with the kindly-looking priest, the smiling nun, and a small boy, dressed in a cassock, who looked just like Oliver did when he was a kid.</p><p>He read until it was light, about poverty, and cruelty, and death, and wished he hadn’t.</p><p> </p><p>*</p><p> </p><p>Something wasn’t right with Oliver. </p><p>He’d appeared in the office that morning looking like he hadn’t slept at all, spent twenty minutes staring at Mariemaia, and then the rest of the day alternating between staring blankly at the files in front of him, and looking at Wufei like they’d never met before and Oliver was wondering what he was doing in a room with a total stranger.</p><p>Wufei wasn’t naive enough to believe that this was completely unrelated to the conversation they’d had the night before, and although he had perhaps been a little harsh, he had no regrets. He’d made his boundaries clear and Oliver had ignored them. </p><p>He thought Oliver had taken it better than this though. The man was functionally useless, and while Mariemaia had accepted Wufei’s nod after her questioning expression, trusting Wufei’s judgement that Oliver wasn’t going to be a problem, Noellia didn’t know Wufei, and she seemed to be getting irked. So when Wufei announced he was going to go get coffee, he made sure Oliver came with him and pulled him to a discreet corner when they were out in the hallway, speaking under his breath.</p><p>“What is wrong with you?” Wufei demanded, as Oliver rubbed his hands over his face and rumpled up his hair, looked tired and very stressed.</p><p>“You were a Gundam pilot,” Oliver hissed, suddenly snapping in a way that startled Wufei after the fugue state the other man had been in for the last few hours. “You both were. At <em> fifteen </em>.”</p><p>“Did Duo tell you?” Wufei asked, warily. This explained a lot, but perhaps the delivery had been poor, because Oliver seemed to be struggling to deal with it.</p><p>“No, Duo didn’t tell me!” he snapped back. “Duo didn’t tell me anything! No-one’s told me anything! I’ve just been told I wouldn’t understand, and had to deal with Duo’s fucking batshit nonsense, and now I’m trying to get my head around it all!”</p><p>He put one hand on his hip, the other over his mouth, and turned toward the wall to catch his breath as Wufei shushed him. The last thing either of them needed was any of the other Preventers hearing Oliver have a breakdown in the corridor. Batting Wufei’s hands away, Oliver turned back and leaned in close, jabbing his fingers at him. It took a lot of self-control not to break them.</p><p>“I want you to tell me everything,” Oliver demanded. “Don’t leave <em> anything </em> out.”</p><p>“You need to talk to Duo,” Wufei said, holding his ground, not backing out of Oliver’s space or giving into the temptation to put the other man on his ass. “It’s not right coming from me.”</p><p>“It’s not just about him!” Oliver snapped, his voice rising again, eyes wide and red, with shadows under them. Wufei tried to shush him, but it didn’t quite work. “It’s about you too, it’s your life I was reading about, for fuck’s sake-”</p><p>Enough was enough. Wufei grabbed Oliver’s arm and dragged him into the stationary closet they were standing beside, plunging them into darkness until he could fumble for the switch and hold the door shut behind them.</p><p>“Will you pull yourself together?” Wufei demanded, as Oliver stumbled, righted himself, and turned to face him again. “You’re a grown man, a father, and a professional, and you’re acting like a child. This is embarrassing.”</p><p>“Were you the one who blew up the colony?” Oliver asked urgently.</p><p>“What?” </p><p>“It said - it said that the pilot who blew up the colony wasn’t 01. You were 05, right?”</p><p>Oh. Perhaps he should have expected Oliver to look into things more deeply following their conversation yesterday, although he wasn’t sure he could have predicted it having quite this impact.</p><p>“No, I was in OZ custody at the time,” Wufei said, keeping his voice level and not shying away from eye-contact, even as Oliver looked a little wild-eyed. </p><p>“And Duo…?”</p><p>“Was with me in custody.” It didn’t escape his notice the way Oliver nearly collapsed with relief, to know that his brother wasn’t the sort of person who could blow up a whole colony - empty or otherwise. But then, another thought seemed to occur to him.</p><p>“Was that the Lunar Base?”</p><p>Wufei had never searched for himself or read his own history, but perhaps it was time to become reacquainted with what the records said about him. He hadn’t ever wanted to face those particular demons again, but apparently there was more out there than he had anticipated.</p><p>“Yes,” he said, cautiously.</p><p>“Where they - did they…” Oliver licked his lips and ran his hands over his hair again. What had been haphazardly styled this morning anyway now looked like it had been used to scrub the walls clean. “Did they turn the air off?” he asked, his voice a strangled whisper.</p><p>“...Yes.”</p><p>“Fuck.”</p><p>Turning to lean against one of the shelves, Oliver slid down until he was sitting on the floor, knees bent and looking extremely lost. Wufei wasn’t quite sure what to do, so he stayed where he was, by the door, and wondered why this man who was so far removed from what had happened seemed so distressed by it, fifteen years after the fact too. It was horrifying, watching that expression on Duo's face - yes, Oliver's, but Duo's too. Seeing sadness and horror and disbelief like Duo had never shown, and Duo had <em> lived </em> it.</p><p>“Are… you okay?” he asked, finally.</p><p>“You were <em> children </em> ,” Oliver said. “They switched the air off, to suffocate <em> children </em>.”</p><p>While that was strictly true, it rubbed the wrong way against something deep inside Wufei. He’d been trained, he’d seen so much and been prepared for what he was doing. He’d been more mature than many of the grown officers he’d gone up against. Certainly he’d been more aware of the risks, the costs, and willing to make the sacrifices needed. Although to say he’d come out unscathed was flagrantly untrue, the Barton Rebellion had been evidence enough of that, but the scars were his to carry. Duo's to carry, not Oliver's. Not for him to get this upset without having been there.</p><p>“What about the other pilots?” Oliver asked. “Were they the same age?”</p><p>“I’m not going to tell you anything about the others,” Wufei told him. “It’s not my place. And no,” he added, as Oliver opened his mouth, “you don’t get to know who attacked the colony. That’s confidential for a reason.”</p><p>Oliver scrubbed his hands over his face and looked somehow even more exhausted. His entire body was drooping where he sat, like his bones had given up trying to hold the weight of his cares and concerns.</p><p>“When I was fifteen I was reading fantasy novels, and playing rugby, and trying to cop off with Sally O’Donnell,” he said, and sounded thoroughly miserable about it. “When Duo was fifteen he was killing people, and people were trying to kill him. And before that, who knows? There was a fire, but there’s no records. That’s the life he had, while I had a home, a family, a childhood.”</p><p>“Don’t you dare pity him,” Wufei warned. “He won’t thank you for it.”</p><p>“It said that the first time he got captured was because he tried to self-detonate, but it didn’t work.” His voice was quiet, horrified at the prospect. “He tried to blow himself up.”</p><p>“We all did at one point or another,” Wufei said.</p><p>“That’s so messed up,” Oliver said, staring dully at the ground but not looking like he was seeing anything at all. </p><p>And, to be fair to him, he was right. It was messed up. But that didn’t change the fact that it had happened, and they had survived it anyway.</p><p>“It’s not your trauma,” Wufei told him seriously. “So get it out of your system, and don’t try to pull Duo back through it. You don’t have the right to do that to him, and he doesn’t deserve to have to carry you through what happened to him.”</p><p>“But -”</p><p>“No,” Wufei said firmly. “I’ll go get the coffees. Sort yourself out, and come join us when you’re functional.”</p><p>He slipped back out into the corridor, leaving Oliver sat with the heel of his hand pressed against his forehead like he was trying to hold the stress inside with it. Taking a moment, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply through the memories that had been stirred up, letting them settle again, before he had to go back and face the world he lived in now, not the one he had fought through years ago. And he hoped to god that seeing Duo's face wracked in that horror wouldn't stay with him, wouldn't end up coming to him in nightmares when Duo was on dangerous assignments, out of contact for months, with no indication whether this was the mission he didn't come back from.</p><p>Wufei needed Oliver to get it together, because he needed Duo to want to stay, to stop marching to his death and leaving Wufei wondering for months at a time. And there was no way he would stay while Oliver was like this. </p><p> </p><p>*</p><p> </p><p>"Fuck, I didn't believe you, but those pictures - it couldn't be anyone else."</p><p>"I told you."</p><p>"He's cut all his hair off."</p><p>"It was probably a wig to begin with."</p><p>"And he's working with the Preventers?"</p><p>"I tailed him from the hotel. He took all these weird back routes to avoid being seen."</p><p>A deep sigh. "Ah man, I always liked the guy. Fuck."</p><p>"He wasn't real, and he fucking played us. Who knows who he really is."</p><p>"Guess we should have realised. Duo's not any kind of real name." </p><p>"When do you get in?"</p><p>"Tomorrow morning. Then we can work out what we want to do."</p><p>"I've got some ideas already."</p><p> </p><p>*</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks again to everyone who has read, left comments, and reviewed, it means so, so much. </p><p>My eternal gratitude to kangofu_cb as well, for beta-reading and cheerleading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Ten</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“You look better today,” Mariemaia said, settling into the seat beside Oliver with her coffee and her files. “Sleep better last night?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In that he’d slept at all, then yes, Oliver supposed he had slept better. But he still kept chewing over what Wufei had said to him, alongside all the new things he’d learned about what Wufei was capable of. What Duo was capable of. What they’d both been through, and what they’d both done. And then there was Mariemaia herself…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver studied her as she started reading through the file in front of her, sipping delicately at her drink. She was tall, slender, elegant, her bright red hair cropped into a chic bob that left the nape of her neck exposed, and swept sideways over her forehead. Now that he knew, he couldn’t stop seeing the resemblance, in the way she moved, held herself, spoke. That, mixed with his memories of her broadcasts from all those years ago - her voice had deepened a little, but she still spoke with the same precision, the same eloquence. She was probably only in her early twenties, but there was already so much history to her...</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” she prompted, and he realised he’d just been staring at her again in silence and groaned quietly, hiding his face in his hands. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” he said, although it was muffled by his fingers. “I used to be a functional human being, but it’s been a weird couple of weeks.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I can imagine. I’ll admit, I was a little surprised to find out Duo had a twin, and it really is a remarkable resemblance, but that must be nothing compared to living it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He lifted his eyes to look at her, to find her studying him placidly, sipping her coffee and looking entirely unruffled. He didn’t even know where to start. Of course she knew Duo. That was typical.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You met him…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“During the Barton Uprising, yes,” she said. “Or rather, just after it, face-to-face. We were in the same proximity for a while, though, and he was nothing if not thorough in his approach. Wufei explained to me that you’d recently become aware of our… youthful activities.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Youthful activities, like they’d just been scrumping apples down the road, bloody hell. Oliver’s gaze flicked across the room to where Wufei was talking with Noellia, and helping her to arrange the files to be taken to the courthouse later that day. Mariemaia didn’t miss the look though and her expression became faintly amused. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, that’s where I met Wufei too. Didn’t he look fantastic in those shorts? I had no say in the design of the uniforms, and I was a little too young to understand the full impact of it at the time, but looking back during my teen years, I definitely appreciated the way they showed off his legs.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pushing himself back upright, Oliver couldn’t help but feel a little exasperated with this whole thing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How can you joke about it?” he asked her tiredly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Would you rather I remain a victim my whole life?” She raised an elegant eyebrow at him. “What good would that do, save as a salve to the souls of people who blamed an eight year old for a military uprising?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The things that happened to all of you were awful, though,” Oliver said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Perhaps for the others; I was relatively sheltered. Being a figurehead grants you a certain value which means you’re protected from the worst.” Mariemaia’s gaze wandered across the room herself, shrewd blue eyes studying Wufei carefully. “Sadly, that wasn’t the case for everyone. But by expecting people to never move on… you wish them to relive their trauma on demand because it’s what </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> expect, not because it’s how they do, or even how they should feel.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver sighed heavily, but Mariemaia passed the plate of cookies towards him as a peace offering with a small smile, and he took one.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Also, Wufei and I would make a terrible couple,” she told him, and he choked on a chocolate chip. “The man has thighs of steel, but an absolutely terminal personality for a romantic partner. At times, I can almost understand why my father was so intent on trying to poke a sword through him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She smiled sweetly at Oliver as he tried to cough up the rogue bit of cookie, and headed to hand her file over to Noellia and Wufei. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’d almost made it out of the door, free and clear, when a voice rang down the corridor and he winced internally. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maxwell, I’m glad I caught you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Damn, he’d almost made it out unscathed. Someone must have let Une out of her meeting early, and now she was bearing down the corridor towards him, a woman with a mission.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey boss, just had another session, going to head out now and do somethin’ wholesome and indulge in proper self-care - doctor’s orders…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une drew up beside him, looking skeptical, even in the face of Duo’s most winning grin. She’d always been remarkably impervious to his charms, despite his best efforts. It meant he couldn’t get out of doing stuff he didn’t want to do. Like therapy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, this won’t take long, and then you can get back to… whatever bizarre, unhealthy thing constitutes self-care for you.” She lifted her arm and gestured him down the corridor towards her office. He hesitated for a brief moment, meeting her eyes and doing some quick calculations as to whether it would be worth it to just bolt out the door and down the stairs now, but decided it would be better to do what she wanted. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he sauntered along the hallway and into her office, draping himself over a chair in front of her desk as she walked with unhurried deliberation to the other side and settled herself in her own seat.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une didn’t speak for a long moment, and Duo was damned if he was going to speak first. She wanted him here, she could do the hard work.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wanted to speak with you,” she said, “about what you plan to do going forward, with your assignments.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That made Duo’s skin prickle, but he kept his face casual as he responded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about my assignments?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can be as deliberately obtuse as you like, Maxwell,” Une said, “but I know that even you realise that the situation has changed now that you have an identical twin working in criminal prosecution.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It hasn’t changed,” Duo pointed out, and okay maybe it sounded a little sulky. “He didn’t just pop into existence, he’s always been there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And frankly it’s a miracle he wasn’t spotted sooner.” She looked briefly to the ceiling, as if worried that she had invoked some kind of belated fallout from the whole thing that had just been waiting for someone to tempt it into being. “I don’t want to push our luck any further, and I assume that however… bumpy things may be in your adjustment to him, you wouldn’t want to place McGann or his family into harm’s way.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think we can take that as given,” he muttered, not liking the way this was going at all.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good.” Une opened her laptop and began typing. “You had a very good run in Undercover Ops, and you should be proud of what you accomplished. Are there any departments you would be more interested in being transferred to?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, wait,” Duo said, sitting up suddenly, panic and annoyance flashing through him all at once. “I thought this was just a discussion, I didn’t realise I was signin’ on the dotted line!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une paused, and peered at him, a little impatient. Her fingers still hovered over her keyboard, ready to start again at any minute, and that wound him up even further.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We have quite literally just agreed that your current role in undercover work is incompatible with your brother’s existence,” she said flatly. “What else do you propose?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Extensive plastic surgery? For Oliver, obviously,” Duo joked, even as he was fuming inside. The one part of his life that Oliver hadn’t touched yet was his work, and suddenly here the fucker was too, sticking his stupid face in.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maxwell, you need to take this seriously -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What if I went deep cover?” he interrupted, his mind scrambling for a solution that didn’t see him mothballed, and if it meant he didn’t have to hang around here and deal with all this family bullshit then that was a bonus. In fact, he sat up straighter in the chair as his mind worked through it. He wouldn’t have to set up here and see how sad his life was, and yeah okay, he’d miss his friends but if he was honest he seemed mostly to just bum them out anyway. And he’d be doing something useful, being useful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une was watching him through narrowed eyes, thoughtful but clearly thinking he was bluffing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not certain that’s an avenue you would want to explore,” she said slowly. “You wouldn’t be able to contact your friends, or your family - you’d be essentially isolated.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But Oliver would be safe, right?” God, the way she phrased it, it almost sounded like bliss. No-one to tell him how to live his life, no-one to judge him, no-one to live up to, no-one to torture himself over. “I wouldn’t be workin’ with transient gangs, and if I go to one of the outer colonies there’d be basically no chance of anyone I was surveillin’ findin’ him. Didn’t you say you were struggling to get someone into L3-X8977?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She paused halfway to turning him down when he said that, and frowned thoughtfully. Sitting back in her chair as he leaned forwards in his, she studied him carefully, steepling her fingers under her chin. X8977 was one of the furthest colonies in the L3 cluster, but it had become a bit of a haven for weapons smugglers, people taking a wide berth from the main colonies to unload big shipments which could then be split into more transportable loads. From there it was a short hop to central L3, and thence to Earth and the other colonies. L3 in general had been twitchy about the Preventers and ESUN for years - it was Barton home turf after all. While the major colonies in the cluster had largely fallen in line, with some grumbling, some of the smaller, more remote colonies preferred to see themselves as… independent states.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It meant that short-term undercover ops weren’t an option. The people there weren’t so trusting, they tended to notice strangers. And while they were generally managing to keep on top of most of the shipments coming </span>
  <em>
    <span>out</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Une really wanted to unpick the shipments going </span>
  <em>
    <span>in</span>
  </em>
  <span> and find whoever was coordinating it from the inside. She’d left an open call for agents who wanted to volunteer, but she wasn’t willing to force anyone to go. It was difficult to do so in good faith when they had no idea how long the mission would even last. It would be a minimum of years. Depending on what they found, that could tick into decades.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He could never come back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That’d save him ever having to deal with Oliver and his family. It would stop him having to listen to Wufei nagging him about making an actual life for himself which was the biggest fucking kick in the teeth every time. It was actually sounding pretty sweet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Une should have been leaping at this chance - the fact that she wasn’t turning him down out of hand showed how much she wanted it. But why wasn’t she taking him up on it? He didn’t break her gaze, kept his face blank, and waited her out. Her eyes narrowed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t think I don’t know why you’re offering to do this, Maxwell,” she said, finally. “But we do need to deal with X8977. The intel you gained last year from your operation with the Fox family suggests that things have moved further than we realise, and they need addressing sooner rather than later.” She sat forward again, resting her elbows on her desk and lacing her fingers together. “If you’re serious about this, then we could definitely use you. But you need to be fit.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I am fit,” Duo said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t realise you’d gained a doctorate in psychology, I’ll be sure to add it to your file.” She stood, stepping around the desk and gesturing him towards the door. “Until then, I’ll schedule a full assessment with Dr. Stevenson, further to your current rehabilitation programme, and then take his recommendations.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You need this done,” Duo reminded her, standing himself and moving toward the door, pausing in front of her with his hand on the handle. “Just sign me off, and I’ll go tomorrow.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I need this done </span>
  <em>
    <span>right</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Une corrected. “So I won’t risk sending you compromised. You do this by the book, or not at all.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For fuck’s sake…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re the boss, boss,” he said cheerfully, twisting the handle and slipping out the door with a jaunty salute. “Tell me when and where, and I’ll be there with bells on.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then he was in the corridor and turning once more to freedom - </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll be where with bells on?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo spared a glance skyward, wondering which specific god had it in for him today, and turned to fix Wufei with his most charming grin, spreading his arms wide. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wherever I’m told to go, like a good little soldier,” he said. “Just like you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei eyed him suspiciously, and then glanced at Une’s office door, frowning. Whatever, he didn’t need to deal with this right now, he needed to go home and get his head straight so that when Stevenson did a psychological deep dive on him, everything came back rosy. He sketched a wave at Wufei and made to go, but Wufei closed the distance between them, grabbed his arm, stopped him. He looked at the hand on his arm, mind flashing to the day before when that same hand had gripped his brother’s bicep, dragged his brother into a supply closet, and he had to strangle down the tide of possessive jealousy that reared up inside him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll be late for Une if you hang out here with me,” he said breezily. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m here to see you. We need to talk.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Could he not have one day this week where someone didn’t ambush him? One day where he got in and out without drama. Apparently not today.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not really in a talkin’ mood right now.” He wrapped his fingers around Wufei’s wrist - his pulse was strong and steady - and made to pull the hand away, only for Wufei’s other hand to grab Duo’s wrist and stop him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For a moment they were still, and Duo was back in his kitchenette six years ago. He lifted his head and their faces were as close as back then, their breath mingling. He wondered if Wufei remembered - the pulse under his fingers had sped up a little, and there was something in those dark eyes he couldn’t read. It was the closest they’d been since that night, and he’d had to pretend it had never happened, even when he remembered every painful second like it was new. Even as he pretended he didn’t notice Wufei keeping physical distance between them since then. Was the air between them heating up, or was that just wishful thinking?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s about Oliver.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was the bubble popped with extreme prejudice. Duo shook Wufei off abruptly, starting to walk away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t fuckin’ care.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He knows.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That stopped him, for a split-second. He hesitated, and Wufei followed him, placing a hand on his shoulder. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You told him?” Duo asked, and he didn’t manage to modulate his tone, but even he was a little surprised by how cold it sounded. The pressure from Wufei’s hand lifted a little, like he was caught off-guard, but then it returned, squeezed slightly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we go somewhere private?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe Duo should just book out one of the meeting rooms in perpetuity, that way he wouldn’t have to trail like a sheepish schoolboy behind people as they threaded through the hallways to find vacant rooms for privacy. The more doors they went through, the further his stomach dropped, until he was tempted to just fuck it all and leave.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually they found an office, shut and locked the door behind them, and he glowered at Wufei from across the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What,” he demanded, “the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t tell him about you,” Wufei said, keeping his voice measured. “I gave him some information about me, and he worked it out for himself. You </span>
  <em>
    <span>were</span>
  </em>
  <span> on the news during the war.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you bring me in here just to be smug at me?” Duo asked in disbelief, running his hand through his bangs. “You didn’t need to tell him </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything, </span>
  </em>
  <span>it’s none of his damn business!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe he would understand you better if you did tell him things,” Wufei snapped. “At the moment, of the two of us, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> appear to be the only one attempting to build a relationship with him, which - to coin a phrase - seems to be a little fucked up, doesn’t it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was that possessive jealousy again, rearing its ugly head, because of course, of </span>
  <em>
    <span>course</span>
  </em>
  <span> after everything else that Oliver did better than Duo - family, life, careers - he’d also be the one that Wufei was interested in. They had the same fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>face</span>
  </em>
  <span> but Duo’s wasn’t good enough. He managed to bite down on his instinctive verbal response, but vented some of his spleen by kicking over a chair.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve changed my mind, I don’t wanna be here,” he said, barging back across the room and trying to shoulder Wufei out of the way of the door. “Tell him whatever the fuck you want, since you’re so damn cozy. It’s not like I’m gonna be around for much longer anyway.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t budge, appeared to have planted his feet and turned to stone, and was staring at Duo. There was suspicion there, and worry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” Wufei asked slowly. “You’ve got two months left before you can be deployed again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just signed up for X8977,” Duo told him, with some bitter satisfaction. Wufei’s eyes widened, and he seemed to go a little pale. Well, Wufei’s feelings weren’t Duo’s problem, that had been made clear enough. “I’ll ship out as soon as Doc signs me off as fit. Then I’ll be outta everyone’s hair.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can’t -” Wufei blurted, then stopped himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Watch me.” He tugged at the door and this time Wufei moved with it, watching him slide back out into the corridor and make a beeline for the back stairs. Duo could feel the gaze prickling at the nape of his neck until the fire door swung shut behind him. He heard a further voice - Oliver, it sounded like, where the hell had he come from? - calling after him, but he was Done. Done with emotional ambushes, done with having to answer for shit that wasn’t his fault. And definitely done playing Happy Families on command. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He grabbed the stair rail and swung himself down to the next floor, crouching into a silent landing as the door above him opened and Oliver called after him again, sounding a little bemused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Could have sworn…” And then the door clattered shut, cutting off whatever his twin was muttering to himself. Not wasting a moment, Duo continued down to the back exit, half-jumping, half-sliding down the railings and bannisters until he was out in the fresh and could fill his lungs with it, until he no longer felt trapped, suffocating under pressure from all sides.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A deep breath in, and out. Another. He felt his shoulders relax a little, his back straighten a bit, his jaw loosen.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had an escape route now. He just needed to take it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver was certain he’d seen Duo earlier that day at the HQ, but following him through the door to the stairwell all he’d found was empty air and silence. If he </span>
  <em>
    <span>had</span>
  </em>
  <span> seen Duo and he’d disappeared that quickly, then clearly he wasn’t in the mood to talk to Oliver. That didn’t sit very well, for obvious reasons, so he was telling himself firmly that he must have just imagined it. If he was honest with himself, Oliver didn’t even know what he wanted to say to Duo, but he felt like they needed to talk to each other in light of all the new information he’d uncovered. Did it change things? It felt like it did. How would their relationship move forward knowing that Duo was… a killer, a former terrorist? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Knowing that if Oliver’s father had still been in active Alliance service during the war, Duo might have killed him. Or Wufei. He’d been trying not to think on that one too long, but it kept popping up and making him feel more than a little queasy. There must have been something going around too because he’d bumped into Wufei shortly after his fraternal hallucination and the other man had looked a little grey around the gills too, seemed more than a little subdued, rather than just quiet and measured as he usually did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He hadn’t seen Wufei that ruffled at all since he’d arrived, something must have really done a number on him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time he got back to the hotel, he was exhausted again. He felt like he’d been emotionally drained for days. He really needed to call Duo, had to decide what he was going to tell Cait about all this - could he tell her anything? Would she flip out? Was it even something he was allowed to tell her? He was looking forward to neither conversation, so - wisely or not - he stopped in the lobby bar before heading to his room, treating himself to a pint of Guinness, comfort for the soul and stomach.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Precious cargo in hand, he turned towards the elevators, only to collide headfirst with a petite blonde woman. Guinness went down his front, arms tangled, something hit the clasp on his briefcase and papers slid all over the floor. They froze for a second, and Oliver took a moment to mourn his pint, before checking the woman was alright and un-drenched. She was dry, but looked horrified, and dropped to the floor scrabbling to gather together all the papers. He set the glass aside and crouched down to help her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m so sorry,” she said, mortified, standing and dropping papers and his diary on a nearby table, flicking through them and shaking them out to make sure they were dry, as he dropped another pile on the table and grabbed a napkin to dab at himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” he assured her. “It’s not a problem.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let me replace your drink at least?” she offered, pulling her purse out of her handbag as he tossed aside the napkin and bundled up the papers to put back in his briefcase, he’d sort them out later. “Maybe,” she added, coyly, “I could keep you company for it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver glanced up at her, saw her eyes flick over him, and gave her a crooked little grin, the one which nearly always got Cait to stop being mad at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s kind of you, but sadly I’ve got work to do,” he said, clipping his briefcase shut and making sure her gaze flicked to his wedding ring as he did so. “These things happen, so-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well I can replace your drink at least,” she said, and disappeared to the bar, while he used another napkin to try and sop up some of the worst of the beer from his front. What a pain, this was one of his favourite ties. He’d have to see where the nearest dry cleaner was, he didn’t want to leave it smelling of beer for too long, or else it would linger. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A new pint appeared in his line of sight quickly, and the woman smiled at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Here, good as new,” she said, and her gaze dropped to his sodden tie. “Let me know how much cleaning costs are too, I can pay for that -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s really not necessary,” he told her. “Just the pint, that’s all I need.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She pulled a pen out of her bag and a napkin, scrawling on it before folding it up and sliding it into his overcoat pocket with a wink. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s my number,” she said firmly. “Call me when you know how much it costs. Or, I’m in room 224, if you want to come by and see me. I’m Freya.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oliver,” he said, and then, because she seemed to want a bit more, “I’ll drop you a line if I need a new tie.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The woman pouted, a pretty little pout, as he stepped around her and made his way up to his room. It was a relief to get the door closed. He dropped his briefcase on the bed and stripped off his sticky shirt and tie, dropping them on the floor to be a problem for later. He fished his phone out of his pocket and took a mouthful of beer before dialling Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It rang to voicemail.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, it’s just me,” he said, because he felt like he should leave a message to show he’d tried. “Just wanted to - uh - give you a bell and catch up. We should grab a drink again. Let me know when you’re free.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There, he’d tried. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She hadn’t been sure about Freya when Karl appeared with the tiny blonde woman at his side, but even Meredith had to admit she was effective, and having a face Maxwell didn’t recognise on side would always be a bonus.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lots of legal notes,” Freya told them, sprawled as she was on the bed, popping a bit of pink bubblegum with her tongue. “Something about Hernandez two days from now in the diary.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sofia Hernandez,” Karl told Meredith. “She’s being tried for people and arms trafficking. Prevs caught her about six months ago. Guess Maxwell’s involved in that somehow too.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s just excellent at ruining people’s days, isn’t he?” Meredith mused, bringing up the details on Sofia Hernandez. Her trial was due to begin in two days, at the ESUN International Courthouse. “Well, at least we know where he’s going to be, so we can ruin his.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Aaaahhh thank you all for being so kind and so patient with me. The last few months have been INSANE what with home improvements, starting a new job, and pandemic nonsense. I'm hopefully going to be more regular for the rest of the fic, so thank you for bearing with me.</p>
<p>A million and one thanks to kangofu_cb for somehow finding time to beta around her own ridiculously busy life.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Eleven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>X8977.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fuck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei had honestly thought no-one would ever take that posting. He’d been hoping that eventually ESUN would give in and just let them raid the whole colony, but there were too many civilians there for anyone to want to take the risk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And now Duo - </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Things had backfired horribly, and he lay in bed, staring at the dark ceiling and feeling cold to his core and nauseated. He’d been trying to stop Duo going away for months at a time, and now he could be gone for years.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Be careful what you wish for</span>
  </em>
  <span>…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Was there any way to stop him? Was there anything that would make him stay? Apparently family wasn’t going to do it - for all he’d seemed to be warming up to Oliver initially, the involvement of friends and wider family had sent him running even faster in the opposite direction. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He felt hollow, like someone had reached inside him and ripped out everything that kept him doing anything beyond basic functioning. He’d felt like this after Treize, and after Heero had snapped him out of his madness during the Barton Uprising. He wasn’t unfamiliar with the sensation. It had been a while, but he remembered it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fortunately he didn’t have to deal with Mariemaia and Noellia today, they were at the courts, taking receipt of all the boxes of files that were packed up to be housed in their rooms there. He only had to face Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And the face was the thing, wasn’t it? Every time he looked at Oliver, Wufei felt like someone was pressing his chest until all the air was squeezed out of his lungs. So he avoided looking at Oliver - looked past him, looked at his work, kept his eyes down. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Have you spoken to Duo?” Oliver asked, breaking the silence. “He hasn’t called me back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not for a couple of days,” Wufei replied tightly, and he hoped the hesitation wasn’t as noticeable as it felt. It seemed like Duo was avoiding Oliver as well, the Irishman looking perplexed and irritated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve called and texted him,” he muttered. “You don’t think something’s wrong, do you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>There’s lots wrong, but nothing you can help with.</span>
  </em>
  <span> “I’m sure he’s fine,” Wufei said. “He’s just… independent.” As good a euphemism as any for a man so outstandingly averse to meaningful interpersonal relationships that he was going to put himself out of contact for potential </span>
  <em>
    <span>years</span>
  </em>
  <span> to avoid having to admit that there were people in his life who could make him feel vulnerable. He might run and hide...</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver sighed irritably, and Wufei looked around the room. It seemed oddly empty now, with the files boxed up and ready to be returned to the archives, copies safely at the courthouse with Noellia and Mariemaia.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hard to believe we’re all done, isn’t it?” Oliver said, following his gaze. “I’ll admit I’m kinda miffed I’m not there in the courtroom seeing those tossers get sent down. Don’t s’pose I’ll get another chance in the future either. I doubt Une’ll have me back again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m glad I got the chance to work with you this time.” Wufei turned back to him, and held out his hand. “I appreciated it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His grip warm and firm, the Irishman threw a cheeky grin at Wufei before tugging him in for a surprise hug. Wufei had to suppress his instinctive reaction to respond violently, his instincts screaming stranger while his Id saw Duo pulling him closer, and instead he just sort of froze and tumbled into his grip. He found himself chest-to-chest, nose against Oliver’s neck, inhaling his cologne. He smelled different from Duo, felt different - a smidge less broad, a bit less firm - and that brought Wufei back to himself with a thump.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re well past that nonsense now,” Oliver said, oblivious, squeezing Wufei tight. “You’re acting like we’re never gonna see each other again, but after this you’re basically family.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Was that a movement through the window on the door? Wufei couldn’t be sure, he was busy trying to extricate himself from the very affectionate hug, trying to process that declaration. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s… kind of you, but really very unnecessary,” he said, “I did nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were someone I could talk to,” Oliver told him, “an’ you kept an eye out for me. That meant a lot. And while we’re not workin’ together any more, don’t think you’re done with me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think it’s me that you need to worry about,” Wufei said, offering Oliver an awkward smile. The idea of Oliver wanting to spend more time with him even as Duo was unreachable sent a painful stab right through him. “I have… to go. I have a meeting.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t quite sure what Oliver said in response, he didn’t really hear it over the noise of his own thoughts.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Oliver tried not to be a little hurt that Wufei totally blanked his suggestion they grab drinks after work, the other man had been subdued the last two days - more so than his usual quietness - and there was clearly something bothering him. But Oliver hadn’t exactly felt like himself either after the revelations of the week. He had the distinct feeling Duo was avoiding him, which made him feel like he’d done something wrong already, and he hadn’t spoken to him since that ridiculous dinner party. And stood here, in the now mostly-bare room, with boxes of files packed up for storage, while the trial started without him… it felt like the ending of something big, but like it was ending with a whimper and not a bang. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Wufei scurried out of the room without saying bye, he was left standing in an empty room, wondering what to do with himself and feeling more than a little morose about it all. Technically his contract covered him for another couple of weeks, with a clause for an extension if it went on longer than that, but Une had made it clear that he wasn’t needed for anything further. They would pay his full contract, but that was it. His firm weren’t expecting him back from this sabbatical any sooner, he could go home, have two weeks holiday on full pay. Try to work out what normal life was again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The idea seemed strangely depressing, and a little like giving up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maybe Duo wanted to hang out, he thought, with no real conviction. Maybe this time he would answer his phone, and they could go for a drink, and he wouldn’t be left to fill time, on his own, far away from his home and family, feeling like he’d been kicked to the curb.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He dialled. It rang. It went to voicemail. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shocker.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stood there, staring at the screen and contemplating his next move, Oliver couldn’t help but jump a little when it buzzed in his hand and the screen lit up with a call from a number he didn’t recognise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver?” came Mariemaia’s voice, tinny over the small speaker. “Are you still at the HQ? Can you do me a favour? We’re missing a file - I could have sworn I cross-checked the list, but we’re missing 517-B. I don’t know what happened, I was certain I had - anyway, any chance you could copy it and send it over to the court?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When do you need it?” he asked, scrawling down the reference on his hand, phone awkwardly tucked between his shoulder and chin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yesterday,” Mariemaia said dryly, “but as soon as you can get it here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, don’t worry,” he reassured her. “The boxes haven’t been filed yet so I shouldn’t be long.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Thank you</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Mariemaia said. “Tell whoever brings it to call me on this number when they get here, I’ll meet them in the lobby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took no time to find the paperwork, neatly organised as everything was, and fifteen minutes later Oliver was holding the copy in his hands and arguing with himself. Une had told him not to go to the courts, but he had nothing to do. He was literally wasting space and time. Everyone else in this building had work to get on with, and sending them on an hour’s round trip - minimum! - when he sat around with his thumb up his arse on Preventer’s pay seemed like a ridiculous use of resources. Besides, he reasoned, Duo never worked in Brussels, and Duo hadn’t worked this case, so the odds of anyone recognising him would be very small. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The cab dropped him round the back of the courthouse and he felt very pleased with himself, a bit like a spy, as he skulked by the staff smoking entrance and waited for Mariemaia to come let him in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing here?” she demanded, swinging the door open, phone in hand, looking irritated and a bit fed up with him, even as he held out the folder to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s nice,” he said. “What about a bit of gratitude?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get in here,” she snapped, grabbing his wrist instead of the folder and dragging him into the corridor, pulling the door shut behind them. “You know you’re not supposed to be here, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> know you’re not supposed to be here, so I have to wonder what on earth you think you’re playing at.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Until this point, Oliver had only been able to see the Khushrenada in her, but right now the Une was shining through bright and bold. They even had the same glare, and it was impressively intimidating even on a twenty-something barely out of law school. His enthusiasm deflated as suddenly as it had bloomed, and now he felt ridiculous and stupid.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was trying to help…?” he offered. It was clear from her expression that she didn’t buy that one bit, but the sound of footsteps down the corridor behind them stopped whatever she had planned to say. Instead she gestured impatiently for him to follow her and led the way briskly into the depths of the building, until they were out of the carpeted area and onto the tiled floors branching off the main lobby. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They paused at the end of the hallway, Mariemaia gesturing for him to tuck back against the wall as she peered out to see how busy it was out there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to hide you in our office,” she told him, “and you’ll have to wait there until things have quieted down. We can sneak you out later when everyone has gone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am sorry,” Oliver said quietly. “I really didn’t think it would be a problem, I thought the whole thing was being blown up unnecessarily.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I bet you’d like to know how wrong you were,” came a deep, woman’s voice in his ear, and he stiffened, as he felt something hard press against the small of his back. “Hello Duo, long time, no see. I’m glad you decided to deliver that file yourself, I had better things to do than keep stealing paperwork to get you here. Ah ah ah! You stay where you are.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This last was addressed to Mariemaia, who had spun on the spot and gone pale, looking at a point over Oliver’s shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not Duo,” Oliver said, and then tried to flinch away as the gun - he wasn’t an expert, but he was pretty sure it was a gun - jabbed into his spine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’d worked that out,” the voice growled. “I don’t give a shit what your real name is, the three of us are going for a little walk to somewhere private. Neither of you is going to raise the alarm - I promise you I can pull this trigger before anyone hears you, and if I get a shot in before I go down, I’ll be pretty happy with that outcome. Understand?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver met Mariemaia’s eyes, and nodded shakily. He understood, but maybe he could prove himself not quite so worthless before this got out of hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let her go,” he said, “she’s got nothing to do with this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s my insurance for your good behaviour,” the woman behind him said. “It’s too late for you to be worrying about collateral damage now. Get moving.” She nudged him and he stumbled forward. “We’re going to go down the first corridor on the left, then we’re heading down the stairs and into the first room on the right. Think you can remember that, sweetheart? Good girl, you lead the way. Nice and natural.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even though she was clearly terrified, Mariemaia turned and after a brief hesitation, led the way with her head held high and surprisingly steady steps. They skirted the edge of the grand entrance, with its marble floors, vaulted ceilings, and decorative moldings and woodwork. Oliver had dreamed of being in here, working in here, but it was like he couldn’t see any of it. He wondered if he could stumble, trip the woman behind him, and give Mariemaia a chance to run. Perhaps he wouldn’t get out of it unscathed, but maybe it would give her a shot at getting free.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Or maybe it would make things worse. Maybe they’d both get shot.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He should have listened to Une.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mariemaia glanced over her shoulder as they turned out of the foyer, blue eyes wide, and her face pale. He tried to smile encouragingly at her as her gaze slid past him. He wasn’t sure it worked, but a muscle seemed to tighten in her jaw, and she lifted her chin a little higher when she turned her face forward again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was an irritating part of his brain that pointed out that Duo would know what to do in this situation, and boy that made him feel about as useless as he had ever felt. Another part pointed out that he wouldn’t be in this situation if it wasn’t for Duo, and Oliver had to quash both parts down for being entirely unhelpful. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They ended up down another service corridor, trotting down bare concrete stairs. The clacking of Mariemaia’s heels echoed off the walls, like they were ticking down seconds. What they were counting down for, Oliver didn’t like to think about too deeply. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This door here,” the woman behind him instructed, and Mariemaia obliged, opening a nondescript door to their right. “Inside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver followed Mariemaia through and then stumbled as he was shoved forwards. He turned as the door was kicked shut, Mariemaia helping him regain his balance, pulling them to one side of the room while their captor walked round to stand opposite them. The tall brunette’s gunhand didn’t waver as she tossed aside the tray and dish towel that had been covering it. The empty glasses and water bottle the tray had held smashed on the floor and Oliver flinched, but the woman didn’t seem to notice the noise as much as Oliver's reaction. She raised an eyebrow and her lips curled in a sneer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know who you think you’re fooling with this act,” she said. “Let’s drop it and try to do this with some dignity. Maybe you'll die having impressed your little friend.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pushed Mariemaia behind him, even as his stomach tried to climb its way out of his throat, and he tried to ignore the gun levelled at his chest. It took all his concentration to make eye contact with the woman, and if his voice wasn’t quite as steady as he would have liked, he wasn’t going to worry about it now. He tried to measure the distance between him and the door, without letting his eyes move, wondered if he could push Mariemaia towards it and she’d have time to get out if he moved in the other direction.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look, there’s been a huge misunderstanding,” he tried. “I don’t know who you are, and I’m sorry for whatever happened - but surely you don’t plan to kill us </span>
  <em>
    <span>here</span>
  </em>
  <span>? You’ll get caught.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The woman snorted and tilted her head towards the window at the far end of the room, which Oliver realised was in fact a door, onto some steps up to street level. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve made plans for this, Duo, don’t you worry,” she reassured him. “I dodged your set-up last time, but half my family took the fall ‘cause of you. I’m not letting you get away with it. I haven’t seen my brother in a year, so have some damn respect and stop playing. I’m giving you a chance to die honest, which is more than you gave us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Some hysterical part of Oliver’s brain threw up something stupid Duo had said when he’d met Cait that first time, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I may run and hide, but I never tell a lie</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Well he was definitely a pro at running and hiding, and he guessed that today proved why. Stupid, </span>
  <em>
    <span>stupid</span>
  </em>
  <span>… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>If he made it through this, Cait was going to fucking kill him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fumbling behind him, he found Mariemaia’s hand and gripped it. She squeezed reassuringly, and the resolve he’d always hoped he would have in a situation like this, but hadn’t quite been able to find, appeared. She was a kid, and she was only here because he didn’t do what he was supposed to. He had to get her out safely. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright,” he said, untangling his fingers from Mariemaia’s, and moving his hand to her arm, “fine. I’ll behave.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next few seconds seemed like the longest of his life. Longer than when Niamh was born and she didn’t make a sound at first. Longer than when he’d asked Cait to marry him and she’d just stared at him. He wondered if he’d ever experience anything as long again, and really hoped not.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He half-shoved, half-pulled Mariemaia towards the door they’d come in through, sending her staggering with the momentum, as he started to run towards the door on the far side of the room. Their captor seemed a little startled, but caught up quickly, tracking Oliver after only a nanosecond’s indecision. He just about registered Mariemaia’s scream, </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver, </span>
  <em>
    <span>no</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then there was a muffled bang, and he stumbled forward two, three steps, like he’d been shoved, before tripping over his own feet and landing heavily on the floor. His shoulder throbbed like he’d been walloped, but he felt winded. The door to the room slammed open as his hands hit the floor, sending sharp shocks up his wrists that he felt up to the throbbing in his shoulder, and he just about registered the shout of</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Preventers, stand down!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>over the sound of rushing white noise in his ears. He struggled to breathe in, distantly he was aware of running footsteps, the crash of something being pulled over, gunshots, a door - </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His vision was going a little fuzzy at the edges, but he was frozen on his hands and knees, staring at his splayed fingers on the bare concrete floor, trying to remember how to inhale and exhale. He noticed something red and dark dripping next to his thumb, thick and sticky. He could taste something metallic at the back of his throat, but he was struggling to swallow it. His arms were starting to shake, and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold himself up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver,” came Mariemaia’s voice from a very long way away, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think,” he said, and then paused, his mouth felt thick and sticky and woolly. He tried to swallow but it was like having a mouthful of treacle, and it didn’t make things any clearer. The fuzzy edges of his vision were going black. “I think… I’ve been shot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heard a man’s voice barking something about needing an ambulance, another one shouting about a suspect on the run, armed and dangerous. He heard Mariemaia telling him to stay awake, but all he could do was slur out “sorry”, and everything went black.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had been a grudging decision to go see Oliver that morning, and frankly Duo was only going because he felt obligated to do so before disappearing, and he figured work would be the safest place to do it. No chance of getting dragged into wider family nonsense, plenty of ways to escape. Then he could disappear on his mission without the accusation at the back of his mind that he’d just abandoned everyone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The missed call and cautious-awkward-hopeful texts from Oliver had also poked at his guilt glands until Duo had slouched his way into the building to see if he could try and catch his brother between meetings, so he wouldn’t be able to hang around and chat too long. In and out, easy peasy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead, he got to the room they’d been holed up in for the last few weeks and paused when he saw movement through the little window in the door. He tucked in beside the doorframe and watched as well as he could while keeping out of sight. He watched Wufei, mostly blocked from view by Oliver’s body, reaching out towards Oliver, then Oliver pulling him into a tight embrace instead. He could see Wufei’s hands come up to grab Oliver’s arms, and he thought, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Nope, can’t deal with this</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and he departed as quickly as he had arrived. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rationally he knew it wasn’t anything. Oliver was married, and seemed pretty besotted with his wife and kids. Whether it meant anything on Wufei’s side… well, that didn’t exactly matter. The little angry voices in his brain were still bitterly grumbling at him. He knew that if he went in there now, he didn’t have the grounding to not be a jerk about it all. And he just.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Didn’t want to be a jerk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was tired of arguments and encounters. He just wanted to chill out with his friends and have a beer, and not think about anything. Get used to being in his own skin and own mind again. Not worry about his responsibilities or emotions, but he’d barely had a chance to catch his breath since getting back, and he wanted to leave. He might not feel settled or himself on assignment, but he felt in control. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He decided to hide in the gun range, to hide himself in the corner and rack up target after target. Rhythmic, methodical, scientific. He kept going until his pulse slowed to the time of his shots, until his breathing became seamless and his movements felt like water. This was his meditation, and a state he could stay in forever. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Except he couldn’t stay here forever. He had to go back out and face the world. Face what it held, and try to not be a jerk. Try to appear sane and calm and in control, so he wouldn’t miss this chance. Duo was going to drag himself on that mission if he had to. Returning the ear defenders and goggles, he picked up fresh clips for his guns and slid them back into their holsters. Ready to face the world.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sun was bright as he climbed the stairs from the soundproofed basement range, and he felt like he was stepping into a new day. That positive feeling lasted for a tragically short period of time - as soon as he reached the top of the stairs, his phone regained signal, and there was a never-ending buzz as it caught up to everything that had been flung at it in the however many hours he’d been down there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thirty missed calls, from Mariemaia and Trowa, and texts. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Answer your damn phone!</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Where the hell are you?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Duo stop fucking sulking and answer your phone.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the text from Heero which made his blood run cold, sent three hours previously.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oscar Mike, GSW, condition urgent. textiles.muscular.second.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He ran.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>- textiles.muscular.second is a location key, taken from the app WhatThreeWords. It's an alternative to coordinates, and quite a nifty app for location scounting!</p><p>- continued love and kudos to kangofu_cb and to all of you for your support and comments. I'm sorry my replies take a while and are so insipid haha my brain is broken.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Twelve</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The hospital was warm, like hospitals always seemed to be, slightly too warm for comfort. It made that smell linger as well, the mixture of cleaning product and plastic and miscellaneous illness. Duo didn’t really have a problem with hospitals, but he suspected that was because he had always done his level best to avoid ending up in them. Sneaking in the back was pretty easy. He lifted a lab coat that he tucked his braid under, a surgical mask that he slipped over his face, and a clipboard - because no-one ever stopped anyone with a clipboard. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was a strange feeling. The message had sent a spike of fear through him, and dread. He was angry too - angry that he was feeling this way about a guy he wasn’t even sure really counted as family. Somewhat vindicated in his belief that anyone who got near him was likely to end up dead, but that tiny spark of hope he didn’t even know he carried anymore had been viciously snuffed out. And what about the kids? Fuck, he couldn’t think too long about the kids right now. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t need to work out where Oliver’s room was, Heero was waiting in the hallway outside, frightening anyone who walked past.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened?” Duo demanded in an undertone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver went to the courts,” Heero said, his voice even, unruffled. “Someone knew he’d be there, a woman, she’d planned for it. Mariemaia said she kept calling Oliver by your name, telling him to drop the act.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck.” Duo flipped over a piece of paper on the clipboard, staring at it unseeingly as a cluster of nurses hurried past. “Mariemaia…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s fine. Oliver got shot when he tried to push her out of harm’s way and draw attention. If he’d waited a few seconds, it wouldn’t have happened,” Heero added, and a note of frustration entered his voice. “Trowa and I were there, Mariemaia caught our eye and signalled to us when they were being taken out of sight. We were right behind them…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did they get a name?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, but description is a woman, late 30s, approximately 5’8”. Shoulder length brown hair, straight, grey eyes,” Heero rattled off the description as though the woman was stood in front of him. “Causcasian. Dark freckle under left eye. What appeared to be acne scarring on forearms.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The description was familiar. The hair was different, but hair was always changeable. That freckle and the scars, however, those he recognised. “Where did she go?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There was a car waiting for her outside, driver had their face covered. No plates. They headed south out of the city centre, but disappeared in the outskirts. The car was found ditched an hour ago, no prints and burned out.” Heero studied him carefully, a small wrinkle forming between his eyebrows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You haven’t asked how Oliver’s doing,” Heero said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘Cause I ain’t feeling up to bad news,” Duo muttered, before sighing and lowering the clipboard, meeting Heero’s eyes. “...Go on. How bad?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The bullet entered from behind through his left shoulder. It missed his spine, but clipped the top of his lung and lodged in his clavicle, cracking it. He’s in surgery now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo nodded slowly, serious, but not unsurvivable. But it wouldn’t be an easy operation, and he’d feel like shit when he came out the other side. Duo would know.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s been reported on the news - they were at the court to cover the Hernandez trial…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pictures?” Duo asked sharply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, just his name. Une managed to get a binding order preventing any networks airing photographs of him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded, tightly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anything else?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“His wife is in there,” Heero told him. “I think she wants to speak to you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was like there was a contest going for ‘Phrases Duo wanted to hear the least’, and that one was pretty close to the top. He glanced at the door, and grimaced. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t wanna speak to her,” he muttered. Heero didn’t say anything and Duo glanced at him again. “Oh fuck off with that judgin’ face. I ain’t obligated.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t say you were,” Heero said, his face carefully blank. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo sighed and shoved the clipboard at him, tugging the surgical mask down his face as he slipped into the room. He heard Heero ask whose file it was as the door swung shut, and then a nurse demanding to know what Heero was doing wandering around with patient data and marching him off, before his attention snapped to the woman in front of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Caitlin was standing by the window, her back to the door. There was tension in her shoulders and back, her arms folded tightly across her chest. She spun around when the door snicked shut, and it was clear that she’d been crying. Her face was pale, as she hastily swiped at her cheeks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is there any - oh,” she stopped, her expression shuttering. “It’s you. Why are you dressed like that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“People expect doctors in hospitals,” Duo said, but he shrugged out of the coat anyway, setting it aside with an elaborate gesture to show he was only doing it to please her. He tugged the mask all the way off and dropped it on top.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“People expect family to visit when they’re in hospital too,” she said acidly. “You don’t need to sneak in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Other people’s family members ain’t got prices on their heads.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew it</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Caitlin hissed, and she was across the room quicker than Duo would have given her credit for in those heels, and started thumping at his chest, his arms, anywhere she could reach until he managed to grab her wrists and wrestle them down. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew</span>
  </em>
  <span> it had something to do with you!” She was crying again, equal parts rage and fear it seemed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, he shouldn’t have been at the fuckin’ court in the first place,” Duo snapped, and she flinched, startled. “He was told, he knew what I did. You think I jump through all these hoops for fun?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He was safe until you showed up,” Caitlin said, trying to break her hands free, but Duo held them fast - he wasn’t in the mood to be hit again and the way she was wriggling he had a feeling she might go for his face next. He manoeuvred her around and managed to push her to sit down in the chair next to where the bed would be wheeled in and held her there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>My</span>
  </em>
  <span> life was goin’ pretty alright until </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> showed up,” Duo told her. “But as it is, he just gets a little bit shot, and I’m going to lose my fuckin’ job so maybe you could lay off a bit, lady.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stepped back out of her reach and she gripped the arms of the chair, glowering at him as he moved to the other side of the room. There was a long tense silence, and Duo paced up one side of the room, and then back to stand in front of her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I only came in ‘cause Heero said you wanted to see me. What’s your problem with me?” Duo demanded. “I’ve been tryin’ really hard, but no matter what I do…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No matter what you do?” Caitlin shot him a withering look. “Like casually breaking into cars, flooring people for no reason, and having to sneak in the back entrance so you can secretly hang out with senior political figures?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a moment, Duo was lost for words. She looked so judgemental, so superior, and the masses of conflicted feelings he’d been feeling to this point coalesced and decided to head straight to rage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t know half the shit I’ve had to do to keep you safe, what I’ve had to give up-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh because you’re a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Preventer</span>
  </em>
  <span>? I know the Foreign Minister is never seen with any other Preventers. She’s famously never allowed to be within ten feet of them in public - oh wait.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The whole fuckin’ reason that your dumbass husband is in surgery right now is because I work undercover with fuckin’ dangerous people, who wanna kill me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Undercover is such a convenient excuse for breaking the law,” she said acidly. “You had to do it because you’d be found out otherwise. You had to protect your cover. It wasn’t really you - but you know what? It </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> you. You did all those things, and that became fucking clear when you punched a </span>
  <em>
    <span>civilian</span>
  </em>
  <span> while you were off duty.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He was out of line.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who gave you the right to decide that? And to dole out punishment?” Her eyes bored into him, ice cold and furious. “You’re just like all the rest of them. You get used to the power, and then you don’t know when to stop. You batter the world into the shape </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> want, and God forbid anyone stops you-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve got a real flatterin’ view of the people keepin’ you safe, lady,” Duo hissed. “You’re welcome, by the way. And just when did you size me up so well? When I bought you flowers and wine, or in the 30 seconds after that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want to know? Fine,” Caitlin snapped, surging to her feet and looking ready to run at him. “First time you saw the kids, you froze.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, ‘cause –"</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But that wasn’t the first thing you did,” she continued, barrelling over his explanation, colour rising in her cheeks, but she strode across to the window to put distance between them again. “No, I bet you don’t even remember do you? I do. I see it in my nightmares, it’s like time slowed down and I was watching everything in slow motion. Do you even remember?” She studied Duo’s face carefully, saw no recognition, and shook her head in disbelief. “You started to pull a knife. Some kind of scalpel? Out of your sleeve. And god, you stopped yourself, but you know what? You moved so fast, and I bet that if you hadn’t stopped yourself, I wouldn’t have seen that thing until it was buried in one of my children.” Her voice broke a little on the last word and she pressed a shaking hand to her mouth. She turned and sat on the windowsill, breathing heavily through her nose as she tried to get herself back under control.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Duo watched her, horror curling in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t quite remember, except he also sort of did. He remembered noticing something coming towards him quickly, he remembered panicking, he remembered feeling his left hand react instinctively to a threat without processing what it actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>was, </span>
  </em>
  <span>starting to flick out scalpel from up his sleeve. He remembered grabbing his left wrist with his right hand, to hold it in place, as his brain caught up to his reflexes. Oh god.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wufei reacted too,” Caitlin said, her voice subdued. “He wasn’t even looking, he had his back to us. But he saw you react, saw you start to move, and he moved too. He wasn’t even going to verify what it was you were reacting to, just trusted that if you saw a threat, there was a threat. I saw his hand twitch to where his holster would have been – but he wasn’t carrying a gun.” She turned her gaze back to him and she looked furious and scared at the same time. “I could have seen one child stabbed and another shot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You wouldn’t have,” Duo said, but even to him it sounded feeble, hollow. “We’re fast – our reflexes…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your reflexes are the problem,” she told him. “Anyone slower would have registered </span>
  <em>
    <span>children </span>
  </em>
  <span>before they registered </span>
  <em>
    <span>threat</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t’ve hurt them,” Duo said, although he knew it was just words, and essentially meaningless to Cait if she already didn’t trust him. “Didn’t he tell you I was with Preventers?” He didn’t know exactly how marriage worked, but he figured that even confidential secrets didn’t stay that way for long. “Couldn’t you trust me after that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m a black, Irish woman,” Caitlin said sourly. “Not groups of society that have historically had great luck trusting someone just because they’re law enforcement, and that’s something I’ve had to carry all my life for my babies too, that someone might try to hurt them just because of who they are.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not about that,” Duo promised her, as earnest as he had ever been in his life. Even if she didn’t believe anything else, she needed to believe that. “I promise, it was never about that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How am I supposed to believe you?” she demanded. “How am I supposed to believe that you aren’t just another racist, misogynistic, corrupt power-hungry cop?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘Cause unlike Oliver I grew up on L2,” he said, and he let the sorrow and horror he felt at her words seep to the surface a little, let the mask slip just a bit. “I know what corrupt cops look like, I’ve lived it half my life. An’ I’ve seen some dark shit, all I wanna do is make sure no-one else has to see what I did. I’d have never hurt the kids. I only hurt bad guys, ‘cause I’ve seen too much collateral damage in my life already. You don’t know, and Oliver didn’t get it either.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And Tom?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Come on, gimme a break,” he said, with a tired, resigned quirk of a smile. “Even you’ve gotta know that guy’s an asshole.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her shoulders relaxed minutely, she studied him again as though trying to see him for the first time without that fear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But now I’ve got a husband with a hole in him,” she pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’ll get over it,” he said, a bit dismissively, looking around the room and getting fed up with the Oliver pity party. “I’ve got over worse holes, and then he’ll have a gnarly scar he can show off. He’ll dine out on being a big damn hero for the rest of his life.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is wrong with you?” Caitlin asked in disbelief.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lady, if this is the worst thing that’s happened to him, he’s got nothin’ to fucking complain about,” Duo told her, his eyes landing on the pile of clothes on top of a cabinet. “Is that his stuff?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He went through the pockets, as his sister-in-law came to stand by him, watching as he fished out a set of keys, Oliver’s phone, his wallet, and a crumpled paper napkin with a phone number scrawled on it, and the name ‘Freya’. He showed it to Caitlin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know her?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When all he got in response was a deepened frown and a head shake, he flipped Oliver’s phone over, pulling one of his lock picks out of his hair to pop the SIM out. Seconds later the SIM was in Duo’s phone and he was dialling in the number.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’re you doing?” Caitlin asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got a hunch, but you need to play along,” Duo said, and he tried to convey in his face and tone how important this was. Caitlin stared at him for a moment, then nodded, once. “I’m gonna call them, but you need to talk to them. Don’t mention me, don’t say Oliver’s alive, and keep them talking as long as possible. Got it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nodded again, swallowing and setting her jaw firmly. He hit ‘dial’, putting the call on speaker, and then bringing up the tracking software he had written for his phone. It rang twice, three times before connecting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘llo?” It wasn’t a voice Duo recognised, but they sounded wary. He nodded at Caitlin encouragingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is this Freya?” she asked, her voice steadier than Duo would have expected.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who wants to know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My name’s Caitlin McGann,” Caitlin said, watching Duo carefully as he kept his focus on the programme scanning away. It had started searching out the location of the other phone as soon as it had been answered, bouncing its way off satellites and through networks. “I think you gave your number to my husband, Oliver. I found it in his coat, on a napkin.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh… </span>
  </em>
  <span>Look, lady, it’s not what you think,” the girl seemed startled, but that didn’t matter too much as long as she kept talking. Duo gestured at Caitlin to keep going.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d love for you to tell me what it actually was,” Caitlin continued. “It looks a lot like you were trying to pick up my husband in a bar, and I need to know if it went anywhere.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mean he said he was married, but I didn’t think he really </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” the voice said. “But if you’re thinkin’ of hiring a divorce lawyer, you can probably save your pennies -”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who are you talking to?” Another voice, a man, could be heard in the background, sharp and alarmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“His wife,” said the first voice, a little distant as if she had moved the handset away from her mouth. “She found my number and wants to know if he did the dirty.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He doesn’t have a wife!” came the second voice again, furious. “You idiot, hang up!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shi-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The call cut out, and Caitlin pushed her hair out of her face, meeting Duo’s eyes, question obvious. He nodded, saving the address as he took Oliver’s SIM out of his phone and passed it back to her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t think he was really cheatin’, do you?” he asked carefully, and she huffed a laugh as she slid the card back into Oliver’s phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve been with that man since we were 18 years old,” she said, and there was affection and warmth in her voice that Duo hadn’t known she was capable of. “He’s not capable of cheating. For a start he’s useless with women, for a second he doesn’t have it in him.” She looked up at Duo. “He’s a good, solid, reliable man. Trustworthy.” The implied question was clear, and Duo really didn’t have a way to answer her in any way she would like.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead, he tapped his phone against the palm of his hand and shook his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If they think he’s dead, they won’t have told anyone else about him,” he reassured her. “I’ll go make sure they can’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait,” she grabbed his arm to stop him as he turned to go. “His parents are on their way here. They deserve to know why he got shot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They don’t deserve to hear it from me,” he said, breaking her grip easily enough. “Their son’s in the OR, and they get faced with the kid they left behind? You really think they need that right now?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She pulled a face and he took that as acceptance of his point, but she still followed him to the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re going to need to know about you sooner or later,” she pointed out. “What am I supposed to tell them?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tell them he got shot saving someone else’s life,” Duo told her. “And don’t worry about me. Once I’ve done this, I’ve got plans in place to get outta your lives forever. You ain’t gonna see me again, and things can go back to normal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re just going to </span>
  <em>
    <span>leave</span>
  </em>
  <span>? Run away just like that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He paused at the doorway and grinned at her, his most charming, roguish grin. The one that made hearts flutter and charmed far and wide. She met it with a flat look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s what I always do,” he said, “that’s the one thing </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m </span>
  </em>
  <span>reliable for.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then he slid out into the corridor, Heero still gone, and disappeared towards the back entrance. One thing at a time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d calculated he had enough time to stop in and pick up some of his kit, prep for whatever might be coming up. What Duo hadn’t calculated on was Wufei letting himself in and finding him as he was strapping on a belt of spare clips, his knives laid out on the coffee table ready to be slipped into place.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing?” Wufei asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Practising the flute,” Duo answered, not looking up. Two knives into sheaths at the small of his back, another up each sleeve, two in each boot. “Why are you here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I went to the hospital and Caitlin told me you ran off. I hoped I’d catch you before -”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And do what?” Duo met his eyes, finally, a challenge, as he straightened up. A gun in each hand, ready to go into their holsters. “You’re gonna stop me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a tension in the air, and a strange look on Wufei’s face. He looked like he was struggling with something he really wanted to say, and Duo waited. Raised his eyebrows, trying to prompt him to speak.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll come with you,” he said, although it didn’t seem like what he’d originally planned to say. “We can call it in to Une and backup can meet us there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” Duo said, guns sliding home, one in the back of his jeans, another at his hip. “I don’t have time to wait for Une to argue, for her to say this is a police matter and stand us all down. And I need this sorted before I leave - I can’t leave if there’s any chance someone might come after them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then maybe you shouldn’t leave.” Wufei’s voice was strangled, like he was forcing the words out. “Maybe you should stay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rolling his eyes, Duo shrugged into his jacket and grabbed the keys to his bike. Staying wasn’t an option, and the fact that Wufei sounded like he was swallowing tar when he suggested it didn’t exactly make it sound appealing anyway. It sounded like Wufei felt forced to say it, and that was exactly what his ego needed right now. He was saying his usual rote patter about staying home because he felt he had to, not because he even still meant it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Damn, before Oliver at least Duo felt sure they were besties, and he was happy like that. Now it seemed like even Wufei wanted to have someone more functional.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got nothin’ to stay for,” he said, and yeah, okay, it was a little bitter. “And if I don’t go now, I won’t be able to keep workin’ undercover.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then stop working undercover,” Wufei insisted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then give me a reason!” Duo snapped, because he’d had enough, he was so sick of it, “you always say you want me to stay but you never give me a </span>
  <em>
    <span>goddamn </span>
  </em>
  <span>reason!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because I’m in love with you!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words were shouted, like every other argument they’ve had, and it took Duo a minute to process what was actually said. He rocked back on his heels, stunned like he’d been punched and the fight went out of him for a second.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“W-what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m in love with you,” Wufei repeated through gritted teeth, hands clenched into fists by his side. “And - and if even </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> can fall in love with you, then imagine what sort of life you could have if you just stayed and </span>
  <em>
    <span>tried</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words echoed around Duo’s head and bounced off every memory, every time Wufei dodged a touch or avoided eye contact. Of that one time Duo tried to kiss him and ended up on his ass. Of every fight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not in love with me,” Duo said, and he was almost certain of it, he’d told himself that for so long. “You’re - you can’t be.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wufei heaved a sad sigh and shook his head as if he were sorry, an apology. Condolences for his affections.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I never wanted to put this on you,” he said, and he sounded tired. “I didn’t want to scare you away, or make you feel you had to stay on my behalf. I just wanted you to stay so I could see you more.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not in love with me,” Duo repeated, and despite it all, Wufei managed to quirk one eyebrow at him in that perfect arch expression he had.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I rather think I’m the expert on this particular subject.” He looked worried a little now, as Duo’s brain ran through every little thing, every tiny interaction, things he’d scoured for days and days, looking for a hint, a sign, anything to give him hope. All he found was just Wufei, there. Always there, anticipating things, acting as a buffer between Duo and stuff he didn’t want to deal with. Just being patient, except when he wanted Duo to try and get his life together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I kissed you,” Duo said instead, accusing. “I kissed you and you put me on the ground.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now it was Wufei’s turn to look startled, a little guilty. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t think you remembered that,” he said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course I remember that! That’s the sort of clear message you don’t forget.” He stepped forward again, into Wufei’s space, and Wufei met his eyes, frowning in confusion. “You didn’t want it. You didn’t want </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were drunk,” Wufei said slowly, “and angry. You weren’t interested in me, you were just lashing out and trying to destroy things.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was trying to go after what I wanted,” Duo said, “like you’d literally just told me to do. And then you-” He cut himself off, studying Wufei’s face carefully. There was a wrinkle between his eyebrows, tension around his eyes and in his jaw. His eyes were bright, and there was a strange expression in them. An expression that was deep and terrifying and Duo couldn’t understand how he’d never seen it before now. It made his heart squeeze in a painful way and then start beating at twice the speed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duo…” Wufei began, but trailed off awkwardly. His voice raised goosebumps on Duo’s skin, sent a tremor down his spine, it was so full of feeling. All the feelings Duo had dreamed of hearing from the man in front of him, with that look in his eyes. Everything he had told himself he couldn’t have because Wufei had made it clear he wasn’t interested. And now he was here, stood in Duo’s space, saying that he was in love with him? After all this time?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t have time for this,” he said abruptly, and brushed past Wufei. “I have to go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A hand wrapped around his wrist as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, address up on screen ready to show him the way. Licking his lips, Duo made himself look back at the other man, tried to keep his breathing even and not think about how this mirrored the kitchen, six years ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let me come with you,” Wufei repeated. “Please.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I ain’t dealin’ with this now.” He tugged himself free. “We’ll talk later. Maybe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Later, then,” Wufei echoed, but Duo didn’t look back. He had to focus up now. Get the bad guys, get things in order, get out of town. That was the plan.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was always the plan.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Thirteen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Eternal, never-ending thanks to kangofu_cb for her beta reading, and to all of you for reading and commenting. It means an awful lot!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The bungalow was on the edge of a run-down bit of suburb on the outskirts of the city, about a mile from the airport. It had peeling paint and an overgrown driveway, grubby windows. There was a battered, nondescript sedan on the drive, but it didn’t look like it was loaded up. No-one looked twice at it, which made it the perfect hideout. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Or it would have done, if Duo hadn’t known exactly who was inside, if his phone hadn’t tracked it exactly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d hidden his bike two streets down and walked up, clinging to fences, cap pulled down over his face, braid tucked down his jacket, and sunglasses. He’d squashed down every thought of Oliver, of Wufei, and instead just let the anger forge his focus into something stronger, something deadly. After spending some time hiding in a shrubbery across the road and watching for movement in the windows, he slipped across and round the back of the house. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The back door wasn’t locked, and he was able to waft inside like a shadow, closing it silently behind him. There was no one in the little laundry room, he pressed himself against the wall beside the door through into the house, listening. There was no sound from the room beyond it, but he could hear movement and shouting further inside. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>An empty kitchen greeted him on the other side of the door, and he took a moment to clear out all the sharp knives, sliding them into his jacket pocket. No risk of someone sneaking up behind him. On soft feet, he followed the sound down the hallway towards a living room. Three voices, raised. Two women, one man. Bingo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He slid the gun out from his hip holster and knocked the safety catch off with a flick of his thumb, and stepped into the room with it raised and pointed directly at Meredith Fox. He slouched against the doorframe, relaxed as the three noticed him and froze.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Merry,” he drawled, as she straightened up and stared at him, shock and cold hatred on her face. “Hey, Karl,” he added, smiling slowly at the older man behind them. “Been a while since I last saw you both in the same place.” His gaze slid to the younger woman who was sitting in a rickety looking dining chair looking mulelish. “You must be Freya, pleasure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I shot you,” Meredith said darkly. “Even if I didn’t manage to kill you, you should still be in hospital.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m hurt, Merry, I always thought we were friends.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He gestured with the gun to get Freya to stand up and all three of them clustered against the window. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What the hell is this?” demanded Karl, glaring at Meredith. “He’d cut his hair, he’d changed his name, you said he was down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Funny story,” Duo said, pushing off the door and sauntering into the room like he was out for a stroll in the park, “I found out about a month ago that I had a brother. A twin, so weird, right?” He smiled at them again, and from the look on their faces it didn’t quite hit the casual note he’d been aiming for. Oh well. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So… you’re not working with the Preventers?” Karl asked slowly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, no, I totally am,” Duo reassured him. “But the thing is, you kinda shot my brother, and he didn’t actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> anything to you. That’s a bit fucked up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You sold us out,” Meredith hissed, whatever anger that had driven her here bubbling back up. “My family is in prison because of you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your family’s in prison because they’re killers,” he corrected. “‘Cause they bought and sold big fuckin’ weapons to bad fuckin’ people. There’s a decent body count all traced back to you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He glanced aside to look into one of the boxes in the house, lifting the flap to peer inside. Mouldering magazines and ancient newspapers, dusty plates and chipped glasses. On the surface, nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing to suggest this was anything other than a forgotten house, the home of someone who’d died without family to clear up after they’d gone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t,” he said, without looking up, and Freya froze from where she’d been reaching for a gun hidden behind the fraying curtains. “I’m faster than you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you want?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo looked back at Karl, studying the older man. He’d always portrayed a jolly, harmless front. He had a big smile, laugh lines at the side of his eyes, and a deep chuckle that came readily. He was a large man, though, and the softness didn’t penetrate more than skin deep. The information guy, he’d broken far more than thumbs in his time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on, buddy, you’re smarter than that,” he chided. “I was surprised you managed to get away, but I guess you always were more spry than I gave you credit for. That beard makes you look old, though.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Freya moved again, but before she could get very far one of the kitchen knives was pinning her hand to the windowsill and she let out a horrified yelp. Duo shook his head and looked at the others in disappointment.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Didn’t you tell this kid anything about me?” he asked, closing the distance and picking up the gun she’d been reaching for, so he could level one each at Karl and Meredith. “Why are you in Brussels? Is it just the three of you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you’re going to kill us, just do it,” Meredith spat, and then flinched as Duo put a bullet on the floor between her feet. He raised an eyebrow at her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why,” he repeated, “are you here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was just a fluke,” Merry said, watching out of the corner of her eye as Freya pulled the knife out of her hand with feeble mewls of pain and slid to the floor breathing heavily. “My flight got diverted, and I got put up in the same hotel as you - as your </span>
  <em>
    <span>brother</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And you ran to tell Karl, who you’re still in contact with? And who was able to come running here so quickly, with his little blonde - what’s the story on this one? Is she another ‘niece’?” There was no answer and Duo huffed out a little laugh. “And Karl, well, he just happened to have a place ready for you to lie low? A place no-one would look twice at. A place right near the airport, and the roads out of town.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Kicking out the bottom box from the small tower next to him caused all three to tumble to the floor with a crash, spilling their contents across the bare floorboards. Shards of crockery and china ornaments toppled to the ground, and parcels wrapped in bubble wrap, neatly taped and protected in comparison to the detritus of ceramics around them, plates and cups rolling to a stop at Meredith’s feet. Duo crouched to the floor, setting one of the guns down and pulling out another knife, deftly sliding it under the tape and unwrapping the package.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Karl,” he tutted, as he lifted up the giant handgun, noting the filed off serial number as he weighed it in his palm. “Desert Eagles? Who’re you selling these to? Where are you even gettin’ them from?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll kill me before I tell you anything,” Karl growled, and Duo laughed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, see, I was gonna kill you,” he said, standing again, “but since I found this stuff, I’ve just gotta arrest you. I’m just gonna have to make sure it really hurts, ‘cause I’ve been having a really shitty week and I’d been hopin’ I’d have something to take it out on”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In a split second, Meredith had scooped up a plate from the floor and hurled it at his face. He dodged easily enough, but it gave an opening for Freya to leap at him, one hand wrapped in a bloody strip of cloth torn from the curtains. While she attempted to claw at his face, Karl dove for the gun that Duo had set on the ground, pointing it at Duo as he gripped Freya’s wrists and locked them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It might have seemed ungentlemanly, but given as she had her legs wrapped around his waist and was trying to kill him, Duo used Freya as a human shield with only a mild flash of guilt. The bullet went straight through her at this range, and he felt it thud into his shoulder and hissed out a breath while the force of it knocked them both back a step. He snapped off a couple of shots to wing the others as he dragged Freya out into the hallway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He set her on the ground and checked the bullet wound, brisk, perfunctory, and not gentle, making her gasp. It was in her shoulder, and she was starting to look a bit pale from it all. That didn’t stop him pulling a zip tie from his belt and using it to secure her wrists behind her back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re in way over your head here, kid,” he muttered. “If I were you, I’d stay down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck you,” she rasped.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Charming,” he said, “I can see why Karl likes you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maxwell!” Merry called from inside the living room. “There are three of us and one of you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At best there were two and a half of you,” he shot back, keeping low to the floor to peer around the doorframe. “And now there’s two of you, and neither of you can shoot for shit.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d half worried they might try and clamber out of the window and make a run for it, but where would they even go? Not far, and he was faster by a long way. Instead they’d made cover for themselves out of the cardboard boxes, there were two guns now aimed over the top of them, at the doorway. Obviously there’d been another one stashed somewhere, because it wasn’t the Desert Eagle being brandished.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was a relief - they didn’t need to be able to shoot with one of those, just get it in his general vicinity and it would probably still put a hole in him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He ducked back behind the door frame to avoid a shot that took a chunk of plaster from the wall across from him. He waited a breath, two, then gave Freya a saucy wink before whipping back into the room and letting off two rounds, neat and precise. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Meredith swore as she went down, the bullet sinking into the meat of her bicep, and she dropped the gun she’d been holding with a clatter. There was a grunt from Karl but he hunkered down behind his barricade - no better than a child’s fort - stubborn to the last. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re just making this harder for yourselves,” he drawled. “At this stage it’s just a case of how many holes you want in you before you give up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Neither of them popped up again, and he crept closer to the boxes, footsteps silent, barely breathing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you sleep well at night?” Meredith asked bitterly. “Betraying people who trust you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just dandy, thanks for your concern.” He could see her now, hunched back against the wall, clutching at her arm. Which meant Karl was…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The giant of a man burst through the boxes, trying to dive at Duo’s legs and knock him down. He side-stepped easily enough, snapping his foot out in a nasty kick that landed solidly in Karl’s ribs. There was a crunching noise and the other man’s forward momentum was halted, instead he tumbled sideways and rolled, letting out a pained wheeze. He stared hatefully up at Duo as he strolled closer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not going to tell you anything, so you might as well shoot me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If that’s how you wanna play it.” One shot straight into Karl’s foot, and he let out a cry of surprise and pain. “Still married to this plan?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re worthless,” Karl spat through gritted teeth. “Everything about you is fake, there’s nothing to you when you strip away all the lies.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo rolled his eyes and shot Karl’s other foot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You wanna know the really scary thing?” he asked conversationally. “That crazy guy that Mike hired? Who worked his way up through the ranks? Don’t -” he added, pulling his other gun from the back of his jeans and pointing it at Merry, who had stood up and was shakily aiming at him. His shoulder throbbed, but his arm didn’t waver. “Anyway,” he continued, “you think all that was a lie? I was puttin’ that on?” Cait was in his head,                  telling him he was a killer, a threat, that he’d gone too far and she was right, and she was wrong. He’d gone too far once, but since then maybe he hadn’t gone far enough. These people kept getting up. He grinned and it was the grin that the God of Death gave, the one which he used to wear in Deathscythe when he mowed men down in their dozens. That had been a cause, a guiding light, and even then he’d wavered. This? This was personal. “I was tonin’ it down for you guys. But there’s nothin’ I need to convince you of now, so I don’t need to hold back any more.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Silence fell, save for heavy, rasping breathing. He heard the thud of Meredith dropping the gun on the floor, the rustle of her sliding to the floor again. Karl had gone a bit grey, even odds whether it was pain, blood loss or fear. There was a creaking of floorboards and quiet rustling of clothes in the hallway, but even if Freya decided to take yet another crack at him, she wasn’t likely to be much more than an irritant in her current state.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s your plan now?” Karl rasped. “You can’t get us all out of here on your own.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” Duo said contemplatively, looking pointedly at his gun, “I can’t.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You said you weren’t going to kill us!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But then you asked so nicely to be shot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a long moment of studying him, Karl started laughing - wheezing, painful laughs. He rolled onto his side and curled into himself as he gasped around his dark mirth. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve gone off reservation,” he said with bleak delight, “they don’t know you’re here and now you’ve got to work out whether you go all in, or try and pull it back and save your snake career.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry to disappoint you,” came a dry voice from the doorway, “but Mr. Maxwell was just keeping you warm for us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t look away from Karl, but Duo’s heart relocated from his chest to his throat as Wufei, dressed in full tac gear, came to stand beside him, shadowed by two other agents with guns levelled at the man on the ground. He was aware of another two collecting Meredith from the floor and taking her out of the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we offer you a hand getting to the car?” Wufei asked, as another agent slid past with a stretcher and between the three of them, Karl was extracted from the room, muttering dark curses at Duo, Wufei, and the Preventers at large as he was carried away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo watched him go, not turning to look at Wufei.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Duo?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll see you back at HQ,” Duo muttered, sliding his guns back into their holsters and heading towards the door. He could feel Wufei’s eyes on the back of his head, but he couldn’t bring himself to look back. He’d expected to have more time before he saw Wufei again. Time to work out all the complicated tangle of feelings he had, time to sort out what happened to his brother. Time to let the rage and stress drain away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He couldn’t look back at Wufei right now, and see the expression he knew now lurked on that face, after walking out on him earlier. So he walked out on him again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Duo hadn’t even made it through the door at HQ before he felt the icy glare of Une upon him. He didn’t flinch, just adjusted his measured pace to head toward where she was looming at the top of the stairs. The agents he walked past went very silent, but he ignored the curious stares as he headed up towards her, and his inevitable doom. Some of it might have been the blood staining his shirt and hands - he’d managed to wipe the splatter from Freya’s wound off his face, but he’d certainly missed some. It was staining his shirt from where he’d been hit too, but that had stopped bleeding for now and his jacket hid the wound. He’d go to Sally to get the bullet dug out when Une was done with him - it was throbbing now, but frankly getting cut open and sewn up would feel like a walk in the park after the former terror of OZ had finished skinning him alive.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was practically vibrating with fury when he got to her office, and ordered him to sit in tones so frosty they could have rendered a volcano extinct. Not following her own instructions, Une loomed on the opposite side of the table, and she looked like it was only that obstacle which was stopping her from eviscerating him with a ballpoint pen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When I said I wanted things done right on X8977, I thought you understood,” she said, with the voice of someone who is trying extremely hard to keep her cool and not quite managing it. “We can’t risk it not going by the book, because we can’t leave ourselves open to turning an already cautious population into one that’s actively hostile. And then you pull a stunt like this!” She gestured furiously at the door, encompassing a broad range of sins. “Don’t think I don’t know that Chang was covering your ass with this after you went rogue. He called in for a tac team saying that you’d gone ahead to secure the location - when he </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew</span>
  </em>
  <span> this was a police matter -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I found weapons,” Duo interrupted - if he was going down, he might as well enjoy the trip. “That puts it in our jurisdiction.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And then I get three prisoners brought in with </span>
  <em>
    <span>holes</span>
  </em>
  <span> in them,” Une continued as though he hadn’t spoken, “and the tac team haven’t fired a single shot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I only shot two of them,” he pointed out. “They shot the other one themselves.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You shot one of them </span>
  <em>
    <span>twice</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” she countered, acidly, “and broke two of his ribs. And you </span>
  <em>
    <span>stabbed</span>
  </em>
  <span> the third.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Does it really count as stabbin’ if I threw the knife?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not here to argue semantics with you, Maxwell,” she snapped. “You’re suspended with immediate effect - you shouldn’t have been on an active operation anyway, as you’re on leave from your last mission, and this involved your family. You should have known to recuse yourself. Instead you decided to go enact vigilante justice.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not vigilante justice,” he pointed out. “You said it yourself, Chang called it in. There’s paperwork.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Get. Out. Of. My. Sight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was one order Duo was happy to follow without questioning. He left the office without looking back, even as he could feel his commander willing his head to catch fire with the power of her mind. Across the hall, leaning against the wall and waiting for him, was Wufei.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>You</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Duo said, grabbing Wufei’s sleeve. “I want to talk to you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This time he led the way to a meeting room, shoving Wufei inside and locking the door behind them, ensuring all the blinds were closed. Wufei stood, waiting as Duo rounded on him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t get what kinda game you’re playing,” he said, finally. “How did you find me?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You had the address up on your phone when you left,” Wufei told him calmly. “I can only assume that you wanted me to see it, because you realised you would need support returning the perpetrators to HQ. At least,” he added with a wry smirk, “that’s what I put in the report.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That smirk, that fucking smirk. Duo stalked across the room, anger and frustration and confusion warring with nervous hope and a lot of other emotions, long-repressed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought you didn’t want me on X8977,” he growled, backing Wufei against the table, getting into his face and glowering down his nose at him. “You must’ve known that if you’d just let me go, Une would’ve canned me and I’d be grounded.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was never about stopping you from going,” Wufei said, and though his voice was calm, there was a slight hitch in his breath, and his eyes darted away for a split-second before he resolutely met Duo’s eyes again. “I wanted you to choose to stay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There were a million and one things Duo could have said right then. A million and one things he could have done. But he was tired, and in pain, and angry about so many things, and he was sick of fighting with people, of feeling off-balance and Wufei was standing right there, looking at him like that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He said he was in love with Duo? He’d fucking see about that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Duo surged forward that extra distance and caught his mouth in a bruising kiss, Wufei froze for a fraction of a heartbeat, then pressed back against Duo with equal vigor. Duo felt Wufei’s groan vibrate through both of them and suddenly it all seemed real. He was here, this was happening. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wrapping his arms tightly around the other man, Duo easily picked him up and lifted him to sit on the table, sliding between Wufei’s thighs and pulling their hips together. Wufei went willingly, hooking one foot around the back of Duo’s knee to bring him in closer. This time Duo groaned and broke the kiss. Both of them were breathing like they’d run a marathon, and there was a flush on Wufei’s face, his pupils blown wide as his hands fisted in Duo’s jacket.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was the expression Duo had dreamed of seeing, and it was here, in front of him, right now. Ready for the taking, and there was no way Duo was letting the chance slip away. After the day he’d had, he </span>
  <em>
    <span>deserved </span>
  </em>
  <span>this.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I heard the shots at the house,” Wufei said, his voice rough and deep. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They weren’t gonna get me that easy,” Duo said, and kissed him again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They didn’t just cling to each other this time, hands found their way under shirts, mapping out skin and muscle as they rocked against each other. Wufei pushed Duo’s jacket off his arms while Duo bit and sucked at his throat, dextrous fingers reaching between them to unbuckle belts and flick open flies. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The noise Wufei made as Duo gripped him was unholy and Duo wanted to hear it again, and again, so he curled his fingers more tightly and began to stroke as he mouthed at the skin under Wufei’s ear.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A second hand reached into his boxers to return the favour and he muffled the noise he made in the broad shoulder in front of him. He then muffled the noise of pain when Wufei brought his free hand up to grip Duo’s shoulder for leverage, but it seemed that the nuance of difference between the sounds was lost in the moment. Duo was grateful - there was no way he was stopping this, even if they shot him again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want to be able to hear you,” Wufei breathed in his ear, and Duo felt his cock throb as Wufei’s thumb slid over the tip, sliding back down the length of him slick with precum. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll keep that in mind for next time,” Duo growled, all but climbing on the table himself to press Wufei beneath him and kiss him again roughly. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Some shifting brought their cocks together and they fumbled to grip them together, the pace turning frantic and desperate. Duo could feel the heat underneath him, against his own cock, and hear Wufei’s ragged breathing as he got closer and closer to the pinnacle. His stomach muscles were tensing under Duo’s knuckles, hips bucking up towards him as Wufei tried to pull him in closer. His grip tightened on Duo’s shoulder and it cut through everything with white-hot pain, his nerves firing and crossing with sensation and pleasure and the next thing he knew he was braced on the table over Wufei trying to remember how to breathe while Wufei’s cock pulsed in his hand, extra slick with the lubricant of Duo’s own cum.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck,” he breathed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck,” Wufei agreed, sprawled on the table and looking utterly debauched, shirt pushed up his chest, trousers half off his hips, cock still half-hard against his cum-covered stomach. His lips were swollen and his face and neck were flushed, but the glassy look was leaving his eyes and his gaze sharpened as he peeled his hand away from Duo’s shoulder and found his palm slick with blood, saw the hole in the cotton. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei sat up before Duo could protest, grabbing his shirt and tearing it, probing the front of his shoulder for the wound, and the back for the exit, his expression furious. Duo tried to pull away but found himself locked in place by the legs he’d been so glad to have around him minutes earlier.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you think you’re playing at?” Wufei demanded. “This should have been looked at immediately! The bullet’s still in there you bullheaded-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Une dragged me in as soon as I got back, I haven’t had a chance yet,” Duo protested.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You haven’t had a chance?” Wufei gestured between the two of them, expression incredulous. “I think this could have waited.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Respectfully disagree,” Duo muttered, but Wufei ignored him, pushing him aside and grabbing the nondescript box of tissues from the refreshment table in the corner of the room, beside the water cooler and the kettle. He took some himself and threw the box at Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clean yourself up, I’m taking you to the hospital.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Duo said, even as he wiped himself off and tucked everything away, “Sally can dig it out and stitch me up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re going. To. The. Hospital,” Wufei snapped, holding out Duo’s jacket to help him into it like some kind of invalid. When Duo didn’t quite manage to hide his wince at the way his shoulder twinged, Wufei did that thing with his eyebrow he always did when he knew he was right. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine,” Duo muttered. “We’re going to the hospital.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Fourteen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>They waited for Oliver to come round from surgery before bringing him back to his room, and he still felt like his grasp on consciousness was tenuous at best. He vaguely registered Caitlin, grabbing his hand, muffled voices, someone gently but firmly placing the oxygen mask back over his face when he tried to take it off.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He drifted in and out, and he wasn’t sure what time he was when he woke up and actually felt like he wasn’t entirely weighted down by a blanket of fuzz. He rolled his head to the side and saw Caitlin sat beside the bed reading. He tried to say something but his mouth wasn’t entirely coordinated and all he managed was a wordless grunt. She looked up and smiled at him, reaching out to take his hand. He could feel her fingers lacing through his and tried to reach with his other hand to pull her in, but it wouldn’t move. There seemed to be something binding it to his chest, firmly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you back with me now?” she asked quietly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got shot,” he managed to say, although his mouth felt weird and the words came out slurred. “‘m sorry, didn’ mean to get shot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re alright,” she said, smoothing his hair back off his face and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “Do you want to sit up?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After some fumbling, the bed lifted and he was able to see the rest of the room. He managed some cautious sips of water, and started to feel a little more normal. The heavy feeling of tiredness was still there, but it wasn’t overwhelming him any more. He was about to ask after the kids when the door opened, and the last two people he’d been expecting to see walked in. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His mother poked her head around the door like she was trying to sneak in without being caught, but when she saw he was awake she rushed in to his side quicker than he’d seen her move in years, a giant smile across her face and tears in her eyes. His father followed a step behind, a small smile of his own.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll just close this, shall I?” he asked dryly. “How’re you doing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why’re you here?” Oliver slurred with a confused frown. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We saw it on the news and got on the soonest flight we could,” his mum said, grabbing his hand and squeezing it in that way she had. “Cait told us what hospital you were in, and the driver she sent met us at the airport and brought us straight here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What driver?” Cait asked, surprised. “I didn’t send a driver.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He was waiting for us with a little sign, he had a lovely deep voice, gorgeous accent - Middle Eastern, I think? He said we had a room booked at the Winner hotel around the corner. I thought you -?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I was dealing with -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Winner,” Oliver said muzzily, as the words filtered through. He scrunched his eyes shut in a hard blink, trying to wake himself up, and tried to push himself a little more upright. “Quatre, he must have done it. Nice of him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His dad huffed a laugh and patted his shoulder indulgently, making Oliver spill some of the water he was trying to sip over himself, and Cait took the cup off him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I’m sure Quatre Winner found time in his busy schedule,” his father said indulgently. “I want to know how you ended up getting shot when I made sure you didn’t make the mistake I made and join the army.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘cause I didn’t listen, an’ I went to the court when I shouldn’t have, and I look like Duo -” Oliver cut himself off and stared at his parents, suddenly panicked, as their earlier words made connections to the parts of his brain that were just slowly waking up. He grabbed clumsily at his dad’s sleeve, missed, then tried again and managed to clutch at his wrist. “The news, I was on the news, was there a picture?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, but the odds of there being two lawyers called Oliver McGann in Brussels at the same time seemed slim.” His dad gently prised his hand off his arm and set it back on the bed. “We got Cait’s call when we were already waiting to board the plane.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But there wasn’t a picture?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” his mother assured him, looking bemused, “no picture.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He relaxed back onto his pillows and let out a sigh, suddenly feeling more exhausted than he had before. That brief strike of adrenaline had worn him out and he found himself struggling to keep his eyelids open. Caitlin gave him some more water to sip, and it felt like he could feel the cool liquid literally flooding through his veins.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good,” he said finally. “No picture means Duo’s safe.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Duo?” his dad repeated, blankly, looking at Caitlin. “Why does he keep saying Duo?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think maybe we should let him rest for now?” Caitlin suggested, her voice sounding a little strained. “We can catch up when he’s a bit more awake and -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The door opened again and a tall woman walked in, wearing green scrubs, blonde hair scraped back into a bun, and a broad smile crinkling the edges of her bright blue eyes. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you feeling?” she asked brightly, walking over to the bed. “I’m Professor Winner, I led the team who patched you back together today. Don’t worry, I wasn’t the one to stitch you up, so your scar should be nice and neat.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Winner?” Oliver echoed with a frown. “Quatre?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Winner’s quite a common name,” his mother said gently, casting a worried glance at Caitlin which clearly said she was concerned about Oliver’s sudden obsession with one of the Earth Sphere’s most famous billionaires. “I don’t think Quatre Winner had anything to do with this…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Actually,” the doctor said with a twinkle in her eye, “he’s my baby brother. I was just finishing my appointments when he let me know Oliver was coming in and asked me to step up. Not that he needed to - this sort of thing is my speciality, so I was first on the roster.” She grabbed his chart from the end of the bed and flicked through it, nodding in satisfaction as she did so. “This pretty much went exactly like the textbook,” she told them. “The bullet clipped the top of your lung as it went in, but got lodged behind your clavicle, cracking it. Fortunately it stayed in one piece, so we could fish it out nicely. Patching up your lung was a little trickier, but that’s fine, and you have to keep your arm strapped so the bone can heal. You’re on blood thinners right to prevent clotting in the lungs, but if you start feeling short of breath at any point, come straight to the hospital. Don’t go to your GP, come here, do you understand?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver nodded mutely, and so did Cait. Professor Winner ran through some more details with Cait specifically because she could clearly see that Oliver wasn’t quite filtering everything through the anaesthetic yet. Before she left, she gave him a smile that looked just like Quatre’s, and saying she would see him for a follow up in a week. After she left, his parents turned to him, full of questions.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why is Quatre Winner getting his sister to operate on you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How do you know Quatre Winner?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Duo’s friend,” Oliver mumbled, feeling his eyes slide closed against everything he tried to do to keep them open. “Went to his house. Got me drunk. Got in a fight with Duo and Cait was pissed - Cait? You here? Love you. Sorry I got shot.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s alright, love,” she shushed him, taking the water cup out of his hand. “You go to sleep, I’ll still be here when you wake up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was when sleep claimed him again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t exactly a surprise when Duo’s shirt had turned out to be a write-off, torn and stained as it was. The nurse had removed it and then put it directly into the biological waste bin without any further comment. The doctor had arrived and fished out the bullet dexterously enough, stitched him up and cleaned him off with nary a blink. And then he’d been taken to get x-rayed and have his arm strapped up tightly across his chest. After a bit of negotiation, he’d managed to get the doctor to agree to let him go for a coffee while the scan was examined, as long as he was back promptly in an hour. Wufei returned with an oversized grey hoodie that Duo could zip up over his strapped up arm, and they slunk out of the ER as fast as they could. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sally coulda done this, y’know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shut up, Duo.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The message saying Oliver was out of surgery and doing fine had come from Heero some time during the mess with Karl and Meredith, and it felt like a tension Duo hadn’t really noticed he’d been holding had dissipated. Combined with the lax muscles and warm glow he’d been feeling since their unusual use of a meeting room, Duo’s limbs felt heavier than he could have imagined, and he just felt exhausted to his bones.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei gave him a gentle nudge pointing him over to a table in the far corner of the cafeteria and promised to bring him coffee. He didn’t even argue, instead savoured the warm feeling on the small of his back, still tingling from Wufei’s hand, caring and possessive. The whole thing made him feel dazed - Wufei’s initial confession had felt like a slap in the face and he’d been angry, he hadn’t believed it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Then… </span>
  <em>
    <span>Then</span>
  </em>
  <span>…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He loved the man but Wufei was a terrible liar, and too obsessed with honour to lie to the point of hand jobs in the third floor meeting room A. And since then, since insisting Duo go to the hospital, he’d been peppering him with gentle touches. Fingers on his arm, a hand on his back, legs pressed together as they sat beside each other - all subtle, but as thought Wufei was making sure Duo was really there.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sinking into the moulded plastic chair, back to the wall, he let his eyes skim over the cafeteria, checking for any apparent threats, seeing none. Most people were ignoring him, wrapped as they were in their own tired tragedies. There was an older couple coming in through the door who paused when he accidentally made eye contact with them, but he gave them a non-committal smile and let his gaze keep skimming across the room before he let himself relax. Duo leaned back and tilted his head to the ceiling, allowing his eyes to slide closed for a brief, blissful moment as he stretched out his spine and the tense muscles in his back, rolling the shoulder that wasn’t strapped up and - </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was someone coming to the table. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He let his body sink back into the chair, and kept his eyes mostly closed, watching under his lashes as the same older couple approached. They were looking at him intently, strange expressions on their faces, but hesitated a few feet away from the table, staring at him and whispering urgently to each other. After several aborted movements towards him, he sighed heavily and opened his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I help you?” he asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They seemed surprised to hear his voice and crept closer like they were afraid he would run away if they startled him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you… Duo Maxwell?” the woman asked, in a light Irish lilt.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oh, fuck.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His mind couldn’t quite work up the energy to extricate himself from the situation, the pain meds and excitement of the day so far were making him lethargic. There was no way to make a quick getaway without drawing attention. And, the way things had gone today, the way that everything had just detonated around him and turned upside down, there was a certain feeling of inevitability about this anyway. Might as well get it over with instead of fighting.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So he grinned tiredly at them and just accepted his fate.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Major and Mrs. McGann, I presume?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Major McGann was average height, his hair still dark, although it was dark grey, with a peppering of lighter hairs around his temples. He had a strong jaw, crows feet at the corners of his eyes from smiling and prominent lines between his eyebrows from frowning. A nose that had been broken several times, and a body that said he could still fight back if anyone tried to break it again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His wife was a petite woman whose hair was coloured a honey blonde and cropped short. She had the same smile lines, but lacked the frown lines, and Duo figured he wouldn’t have problems picking her up one-handed. There was an energy buzzing about her, and her fingers wouldn’t stop fidgeting with a handkerchief. Meanwhile the major stood still, army-disciplined, while his eyes raked over Duo’s face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We didn’t know,” Mrs. McGann said, finally, stepping closer. “They never said -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her husband followed behind and put a hand on her shoulder. She stopped talking and noisily blew her nose on the floral hankie, taking a deep breath to try and steady herself. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Caitlin gave us a brief overview,” the major said, and his voice was deep, and warm. “You’ll be here to see how Oliver’s doing, I suppose?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m - ah - actually here for my own reasons,” Duo said, gesturing at his empty sleeve and the bandage poking out of his collar. “But I got the update. I knew he’d be okay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A shadow fell across the table, Wufei appearing holding two cardboard cups and a frown, glancing between Duo and the couple standing across the table from him. Their eyes flicked from Duo’s shoulder to Wufei and back again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is my…” Duo began, and then stopped, started again, reaching up to take a cup from him, and pushing the chair beside him out so Wufei could sit, “this is Wufei. He’s been working with Oliver. Wufei, meet -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mary,” Mrs. McGann said, jerking forward to shake Wufei’s now empty hand. “And my husband, James. Oliver’s our - he’s our son.” She looked back at Duo nervously, then seemed to realise she’d been gripping Wufei’s fingers for longer than was strictly appropriate and snatched her own hand back awkwardly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"He's still away with the fairies," James added, "but he mentioned Duo. Cait had to give us a brief summary but - I'll be honest, we weren't expecting to meet you so soon."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"That makes three of us," Duo drawled. "I guess you came to get a quick snack before heading back to him?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Mary rummaged suddenly in her oversized handbag, pulling out a pocket diary and a pen, scribbling frantically in it before tearing the page and passing it over to Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"That's where we're staying," she said, by way of explanation, as her husband started to guide her away with a firm but gentle hand on her arm, "and my number. We'll be here for a few days and it would be nice… if you wanted to…"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo waved the paper at her in a little salute and smiled at her, not unkindly. They headed out of the cafeteria, whatever they’d been planning to buy apparently forgotten. He folded the paper over absently and tucked it into the pocket of his hoodie, while Wufei finally settled down beside him. That was something to think about later.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” Wufei asked, cautiously, while Duo took a sip of coffee. It wasn’t great, but it was hot, and bitter, and that was exactly what he needed right now.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve been shot,” he began, tallying it off, “I’ve been suspended, my brother’s been shot, and I’ve just met the people who didn’t wanna adopt me. None of those were ‘xactly high on my bucket list.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei’s leg pressed against his under the table, and he felt the concerned gaze on him. It didn’t take much effort to remember calloused fingers rough over his skin, fierce lips against his, and hot breath against his neck. To remember it and compare it to everything he’d ever imagined, and think about getting the chance to compare it again, and again, and again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As long as he stayed. But staying didn’t seem so bad all of a sudden.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” he said, and met Wufei’s worried eyes, giving him a smile that was tired but entirely honest. “I’m alright.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was long dark when Oliver woke up to find Duo sitting beside his hospital bed, the lights in the room dimmed down to help him sleep, but light enough for nurses to be able to see if they needed to. He blinked a few times, muzzily, squinting around the room in confusion before his gaze landed on the person slouched in the chair next to him. It took a minute for him to focus, and his eyes flicked over Duo’s face, his sling, and the darkness of the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened to you?” he asked, his voice raspy with sleep.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got shot,” Duo said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver looked at him for a long moment in silence, before rolling his head back straight on the pillow and closing his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m definitely the oldest,” he said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I get shot, and you can’t take all the attention I’m getting, so you have to get shot as well. Same shoulder too.” There was a ghost of a smile on his face, although he was clearly trying to keep it straight. “Classic younger sibling bullshit. ”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo let out a surprised chuckle and raised an eyebrow at him in the low light, studying his face as he did so, reassuring himself that he looked alright.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘Scuse me - you get your ass kicked, and I get shot takin’ out the bullies that beat you up?” he scoffed. “Pretty sure that makes </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span> the oldest.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got beat up because of shit </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> did, I’m definitely the oldest.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>You got beat up ‘cause you didn’t do what you were s’posed to. </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m</span>
  </em>
  <span> the oldest.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver laughed and then winced as it jolted his shoulder. He let out a long, pained groan and then relaxed back against the pillows with a deep sigh. After a long moment staring at the ceiling, he looked back at Duo.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You got them?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Duo reassured him, “I got ‘em.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good.” Oliver drummed the fingers of his free hand on his stomach, clearly thinking deep, sleep-fuzzed, pain-medicated thoughts. Duo watched him, slumped in the chair, feeling tired and relieved and </span>
  <em>
    <span>tired</span>
  </em>
  <span>. “Does it feel like this every time you get shot?” he asked, finally.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Only the first few times,” Duo said with a tired huff of laughter. “After that, it mostly depends where they hit you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think I want to get to that point,” Oliver said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When’re they lettin’ you out?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tomorrow. You?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m a free man already, just wanted to check with you when it was… quieter.” Duo rubbed his jaw thoughtfully, then gestured at the empty room. “You’re a popular guy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That made Oliver start up suddenly, as if he’d remembered something, immediately yelping and clutching at his shoulder. Duo was by the side of his bed in a second, helping him to lie back down, coaxing him onto the pillows.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay, buddy, calm down.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, you’ve gotta... My parents, they’re here -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo shushed him and tried to get him to stop gripping at his bandages because the last thing he needed was for a nurse to come in and find his brother with popped stitches and Duo lurking in here after visiting hours.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know, Cait gave me the heads up,” Duo said. “‘Course then I ran into them anyway - dude will you fuckin’ </span>
  <em>
    <span>lie down</span>
  </em>
  <span>, you’re gonna set your alarms off and have all the nurses in here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was hard to try and brace Oliver down without hurting him when he only had one arm, but dropping the bomb that he’d met the Parents McGann seemed to do it. The Irishman froze, staring up at Duo in alarm, and Duo slacked off the pressure a little, before Oliver started fidgeting again, talking a mile a minute.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, I know you didn’t want to meet them. Was it okay? Mum didn’t get too much, did she? And if Dad seemed rude, he’s just not a talker really, Mum talks for both of them -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I swear to god I’ll smother you with a pillow if you don’t chill out. It was fine - it was fine.” Duo kept his hand on Oliver’s good shoulder until he sank back against the mattress, then he retreated back to his chair to safety.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was really fine?” Oliver asked, cautiously, squinting across at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, it wasn’t what I wanted to do today, but that could summarise the whole day, and they didn’t shoot me or suspend me so…” Duo gestured vaguely again. “That makes it almost the least worst encounter I had today.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You got suspended?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo shrugged with his good shoulder, and picked at a loose thread on his jeans. He’d been trying hard not to think too deeply about it - sure he’d been casually dropping it as a joke all afternoon, but that didn’t mean he was ready to deal with it. For a while he'd considered it the worst thing that could have happened to him, taking away his purpose and means of escape in one fell swoop. But, now it had happened it felt like the fear of it had been worse than the reality. Instead, it was just one less thing to worry about. It removed a variable, and somehow freed up capacity to cope with everything else. No point hiding from it all now, he was stuck here, might as well start dealing. In a fucked up kinda way it was almost a relief.<br/></span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘s no big deal,” he said. “Surprised it hasn’t happened sooner, with all the shit I pull.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nah man, it’s fine, honestly -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, for…” Oliver trailed off and made a frustrated noise, looking back at the ceiling as if he were trying to find the right words. “I know about everything, and I’m sorry. I imagine life would be easier for you if I wasn’t here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wufei told you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, just - he let something slip and I figured the rest out myself.” Oliver sounded guilty, sheepish, like a kid caught skipping class. “Don’t get mad at him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you just looked stuff up, then you don’t know everything,” Duo said wryly, “but you know enough to figure out that nothin’s really been easy, even without you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m leavin’ if you start apologising,” Duo told him sternly. “I’m done with that. Only thing you need to apologise for is bein’ a dumbass and coming here when you were told not to. But, then I did exactly the same thing this afternoon, and we both got shot for our troubles.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver chuckled darkly at that, and they fell into a silence that wasn’t quite comfortable, but it wasn’t quite awkward either. A far cry from their first meeting in the back room at the Duck, which felt a lot longer ago now than it actually had been.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you going home tomorrow?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My hotel’s been covered for another fortnight,” Oliver said, “Cait’s going to stay with me for a bit - I’ve got a follow-up appointment in a week. Her sister flew over to look after the kids, picked them up from their friends', so they’re safe. They’ll be strung-out sugar junkies by the time we get home, but the house should be in one piece.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not stayin’ in the Winner Hotel with your parents?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jesus no.” Oliver grimaced expressively. “It was offered, but I’m not sure I’d be comfortable bleeding on sheets that were that expensive.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was a sentiment Duo could get behind and he huffed out a laugh. His phone buzzed gently in his pocket, Wufei letting him know he was back to pick him up. To take him home and let him pass out. He had a feeling Wufei meant his own apartment rather than Duo’s when he’d said that, to keep an eye on him, make sure he didn’t run, but Duo kind of didn’t mind that. For once it was nice knowing the option to run had been taken away. It means he could just stop and not keep looking for the exits. Just for a bit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe for a bit longer too. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He stood and stretched, feeling the pleasant pull of his back muscles, and the unpleasant twinge in his shoulder. Oliver watched him, looking a little suspicious.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re leaving?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My ride’s here,” Duo said. “But we’ll catch up, okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Soon?” Oliver pressed, with an expression that said he knew full well that Duo had been avoiding him for the last few days and didn’t trust him not to drop out of contact again. Which was… fair.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Duo said. “Soon.” He paused in the doorway, hand on the frame, chewing his lip before turning back for a second. “Hey,” he said, “you can tell Cait.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Oliver squinted at him through the darkness, looking confused and not awake or unmedicated enough to follow the change of topic.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Cait?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She don’t like me,” Duo explained. “No, don’t try and deny it, she don’t like me and she’s got a reason. But I guess, she ought’a know why I’m the way I am. And I don’t wanna do it, so you can do it. Then at least she’s makin’ an informed decision about not likin’ me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How much do you want me to tell her?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Might as well tell her all of it,” he said, as he slipped out the door. “Hardly seems much point in hidin’ any of it now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei was waiting for him in the car park, sitting behind the steering wheel and trying to look casual, like he wasn’t worried Duo wouldn’t show up. But the giveaway was the smile on his face as the door opened and Duo slid into the seat beside him. It was warm, and pleased, and just a little bit relieved. Duo had always been able to read the nuances on Wufei’s face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything okay?” he asked, starting the engine and keeping his voice remarkably level.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s been worse,” Duo confirmed, as the car pulled away. “And all signs point to improvement.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A promising prognosis,” Wufei said, and began to navigate through the streets to his apartment, a small smile on his face.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this. I hope you all had a lovely festive period or at least a restful break if you don't celebrate!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Fifteen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The flush of relief and delight had lasted until Wufei had tucked Duo into bed in the guest room with enough painkillers to knock out a horse, and retreated to his own room to try and sleep. But suddenly it seemed to escape him, his mind unable to leave alone the rollercoaster of emotions he’d been through that afternoon - building himself up to confess, only to have Duo deny it to his face and storm off, but he’d said he’d </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span>… And then gunshots, the relief of Duo being alive…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d worried the whole way back to the HQ that everything he’d feared had come true after Duo brushed him off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Then</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the next morning he’d wrapped himself in doubts. Was Duo just pushing boundaries? Was he going to disappear as soon as the opportunity presented itself? Wufei gave up on sleep and tried instead to focus on a book, settled in his armchair. It wasn’t many pages later, but some hours, when he heard the faint sound of movement from the guest room, then the click of the door and the shuffling of feet as Duo made his way down the corridor to the bathroom.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he returned, he followed his nose to Wufei, seated at the kitchen table. There was a cafetiere full of coffee, steaming gently, a mug, and more pain meds waiting for him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought you’d be at work,” Duo said, settling himself into the chair. Wufei didn’t look up from pouring his tea while Duo knocked his meds back dry and reached to carefully lower the plunger on the coffee, releasing more of that glorious smell.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought we needed to talk,” Wufei replied, setting the teapot down, turning the handle until it lined up with the edge of the table, and then placing the strainer on its side dish. “And I was somewhat concerned that if I waited until the end of the day, I might miss my opportunity.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You threw a sickie,” Duo said with a grin, “for li’l ol’ me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I rather think Une would be happy if she didn’t see either of us for a long while, so I’m not worried I’ll get in trouble.” Wufei paused to take a sip of tea while Duo filled his mug. The coffee was blacker than black, the way Wufei knew he liked it. “And,” he added slowly, “I’d be a hypocrite if, after years of telling you there were more things to life than work, I decided to put work first.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo took a deep mouthful of his coffee, his eyes sliding closed as he swallowed. Wufei watched his throat work, the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching while he thought. Watched the tongue dart out to wet his lips and remembered exactly how it had felt on his body.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Lowering his mug, Duo rolled his head, stretching out his neck before he met Wufei’s gaze with unexpected directness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re in love with me,” he led with. Starting with the biggest issue. After that, Wufei supposed, everything else seemed entirely academic. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t exactly a question but Wufei nodded anyway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t expect -”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How long?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How. Long.” Duo repeated firmly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Does it matter?” Wufei asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay,” Duo said, leaning forward and resting his elbow on the table, propping his chin on his hand and studying Wufei’s face carefully. “Longer than six years?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Ah. Wufei felt the flush of shame creeping up his face, but he wouldn’t let himself look away. He didn’t even need to answer, Duo read the truth in his expression, dropped his head into his hand, rubbing his forehead with a huff of tired laughter. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought you were furious at me,” he said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought you’d found out how I felt, and were trying to bait me,” Wufei told him. “I was terrified.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> tryin’ to bait you,” Duo allowed, wryly, lifting his head again. “But more’n anything I think I was trying to spite myself to win an argument. It felt just as good as I thought it would.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want you to feel obliged to stay on my account,” Wufei admitted, topping up his tea carefully. “And I still - I still don’t want to do that, if you don’t feel the same.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was </span>
  <em>
    <span>dying</span>
  </em>
  <span> for you to ask me to stay for you,” Duo said, “I didn’t wanna stay for anything else.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei didn’t want to ask the next question, and potentially break whatever fragile thing this was that he’d suddenly been gifted. Faced with Duo’s shy grin, he perhaps should have just accepted what he had and moved on, but something told him he’d always wonder, and he needed to know.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So yesterday…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I was trying to bait you again,” Duo told him candidly, draining his coffee. “I don’t get nice things, so I was playing penis-chicken with you until you admitted you were lyin’.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He might run and hide, but he never told a lie. Finally, Wufei hid his face in his hands and took a deep breath, bubbling back out of him in a laugh that he couldn’t hold in. It felt like a pressure valve had released and everything he’d held inside for so long was rushing out of him in an unstoppable stream of mirth. The stress of the last few days, the relief, the unfamiliar hopefulness that was starting to uncoil inside him and fill his body to its very edges. Duo wanted him, wanted to stay for him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But instead of saying anything, Duo, being </span>
  <em>
    <span>Duo</span>
  </em>
  <span> to his very core, had instead self-sabotaged every step of the way, until the whole thing had come full circle and he’d finally got what he wanted all along but couldn’t bring himself to ask for.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You need so much therapy,” he said, voice muffled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I get that a lot,” Duo said, and Wufei could hear his grin. “Maybe I’ll look into it sometime.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rough fingers gently wrapped around his wrist and tugged one of his hands away from his face. He looked up to meet Duo’s eyes, and they were cautious, but there was a slightly wondering expression on his face as Wufei allowed him to take his hand, to lace their fingers together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You really don’t have to go anywhere today?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nowhere,” Wufei said, studying the way their fingers fit together, the feeling of their palms against each other. He could feel Duo’s gaze too. Felt the potential simmering behind it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In that case,” Duo drawled, “I’ve got some ideas for how we could occupy our time…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The first order of business, it seemed, was a shower. During the excitement of the day before, Duo had managed to get more blood than he would have liked in his hair, and it had dried, crunchy and uncomfortable. But washing that much hair with one arm out of action was a task beyond even the ingenuity of an ex-Gundam Pilot - or rather, it was when he knew he had better options available. Rigging up a sling out of a towel so his real one didn’t get wet was fairly easy, squeezing the two of them, even in their underwear, into Wufei’s boxy little shower was another matter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve literally touched your junk, I don’t get why you’re bein’ a prude about this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you start touching my ’junk’ now, we’ll never get out of this shower, and it will likely end with you breaking your other collarbone.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’d definitely give me the one-up on Oliver…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s something else you can talk about in therapy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei would have been lying if he said he hadn’t enjoyed it, though. The fact that Duo had asked for his help in the first place had been wonderful enough, but the intimacy of the shower, firm muscles slick with warm water and suds, as they pressed against each other both through sheer lack of space and through Duo’s commitment to ensuring he ‘braced’ himself against whatever part of Wufei was most readily available. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re a sex pest, Maxwell.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I could’a been groping you for six damn years, you’re just gonna have to live with me makin’ up for lost time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re going to get soap in your eyes, stand still.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your water pressure sucks ass, you need to get this looked at.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My water pressure is fine, you’ve got too much hair.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>How they made it out of the bathroom without incident was clearly the result of some higher power’s intervention, rather than any skill or sensible behaviour on their part. Wet underwear was left in the shower to be a problem for the future, swapped for towels and then loose sweatpants that were that little bit too short for Duo. He didn’t seem bothered, though, settling himself on a pillow on the floor, leaning against the end of the bed while Wufei knelt on the mattress and took a brush and hairdryer to the masses of hair in front of him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’s your shoulder?” Wufei asked. They’d put it back in the proper sling and Duo had winced a bit at the movement.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Throbbin’ a bit,” Duo admitted, his head lolled back against the mattress and his eyes closed. He looked relaxed despite it all. “I can feel it stiffening up already, the physio’s gonna be a bitch. But the meds really take the edge off. It’s almost like I don’t actually have a hole in me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei chuckled quietly, setting aside the dryer and combing the last of the tangles before neatly plaiting the hair into its usual long rope and tying it off.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re all done here,” he said, “so if you wanted to try and sleep a little longer I can wake you for lunch.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve got a broken collarbone and a handful of stitches, I ain’t consumptive,” Duo said with a grin, as he twisted up on his knees and braced his hand on the bed to push himself upright. “And I’ve got plenty of energy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span> There was heat in his gaze and Wufei felt the thrill of it through him, but it was tamped a little when he had to compensate for his strapped up arm as he tried to crawl towards him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll hurt yourself.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I really don’t care.” He sat up on his knees and grabbed Wufei’s wrist, tugging him across the bed and closing the space between them. Wufei had to reach out and grab Duo’s hips, to avoid crashing into his chest and knocking his shoulder. His concentration was then totally immolated as Duo wrapped his good arm around his waist, and pressed their lips together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were against each other from knees to chest, and while the kiss was more gentle than the day before, that desperation and </span>
  <em>
    <span>need</span>
  </em>
  <span> was still underneath it, slowly deepening the contact, stoking the fires. It would have been so easy to lean into it, to let it sweep him away like it did yesterday - but then that cold shock which went through him yesterday, when he saw the blood on his hand, when he realised he must have </span>
  <em>
    <span>hurt</span>
  </em>
  <span> - </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” he said abruptly, pulling away, even as Duo tried to follow him. “You’re hurt.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My </span>
  <em>
    <span>shoulder</span>
  </em>
  <span> is hurt,” Duo argued, shuffling to the edge of the bed on his knees watching Wufei stand up with an outraged expression. “There’s nothin’ wrong with the rest of me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I hurt you yesterday.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve been stitched up since then, and been given the really good drugs.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve got a fracture.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not on my dick.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei caught the hand that was trying to grab at his sweats, but he let Duo lace their fingers together, and to tow Wufei closer again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t want to wait any more,” Duo said, “I feel like I’ve been waitin’ for a long time, and I don’t want my only memory to be a fumble in the third floor meeting room.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why would that be your only memory?” Wufei asked quietly, giving into the impulse to push messy bangs out of Duo’s face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“‘Cause soon enough you’ll realise you made a mistake, an’ leave,” Duo told him, but gave him a winning grin that didn’t offset the comment at all, and just made Wufei’s heart twist. Damn the man, he knew exactly how to wrap Wufei right around his little finger. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He pulled his hand away and moved to the head of the bed, arranging the pillows until they were stacked up in a slope, and then he pointed to it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lie there,” he ordered. “And you’re not to move - if you move, we’re stopping.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I like it when you get bossy,” Duo purred, although he complied, settling himself back on the pillows, and he was a little ginger about it as he adjusted his injured shoulder, even as he pretended he didn’t wince. Stubborn.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei straddled his hips, settling down on his lap and framing the heart-shaped face with his hands, pressing a firm kiss to Duo’s mouth before leaning back just enough to focus on the bright, wide eyes, pupils huge with lust.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not going to leave,” Wufei told him firmly. “And you don’t need to keep testing to see if I’m lying. No more games of chicken.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But the last one was so much fun,” Duo purred, and rolled his hips up, the burgeoning bulge in his sweats pressing against the answering one in Wufei’s, coaxing a deep groan from the depths of his throat. “Best two outta three?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei decided that a better answer would be to kiss the irritating man senseless, rocking his hips down and swallowing the deep, rough moan that Duo let out. He let his palms smooth down over the firm, bare chest, feeling muscles and the roughness of scars under his fingers. Duo’s good hand rested on his hip, and gripped it hard as Wufei let his touch skim over stomach muscles, to the waistband of the sweatpants. He paused there, one finger hooked under the soft fabric, letting his knuckles brush over trembling skin, and he took a breath. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Until yesterday afternoon he hadn’t believed this would be possible. Until yesterday afternoon he’d thought this would be the sort of thing he only ever saw in his mind. And now he was here. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Letting his gaze take in the scene, it tracked up from his hands, across the body beneath him, strapped-up arm and all, until he met Duo’s eyes. There was a flush creeping across his chest and his cheeks, his eyes were starting to dilate, and his breathing was a bit shaking, but there was a slightly wary expression on his face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everythin’ okay there?” Duo asked, and his voice sounded rough but a little strained. “If you’re thinking of changing your mind, any chance you could throw me a bone and maybe wait twenty minutes?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you think we’re rushing this?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I really, </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> don’t,” Duo said. “If anything, I think we’re going too slowly.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You seem tense,” Wufei observed, tracking the muscles across Duo’s shoulders, the clenched fists, the set jaw. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wonder why that might be - Where are you going?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He started up when Wufei stood, looking alarmed, but a single, firm hand on the centre of his chest made him sink back against the pillows reluctantly. Wufei could feel the intense gaze on his back as he walked calmly across the room and retrieved something from the top drawer of the dresser. He set both - a bottle of massage oil and a bottle of lube - on the bedside table, and Duo seemed to relax a little more when he saw them, which meant it took him a second to realise that Wufei had grabbed his free arm, and was pressing it down on the pillow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What -?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’d appreciate it if you kept your hand there,” Wufei said, squeezing his wrist gently before releasing it. “You’re not to move.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo looked at Wufei thoughtfully, eyebrow raised in question. Wufei didn’t answer directly, instead leaning over and carefully pulling Duo’s sweatpants down his legs and dropping them on the floor. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You have control issues,” Wufei told him, climbing onto the mattress between Duo’s knees.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s rich comin’ from the guy who just told me I couldn’t move,” Duo said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything’s a potential fight with you,” Wufei continued. He snagged the bottle of oil from the bed and poured some into his hand, rubbing it across both of his palms. “You won’t just let someone care for you, or be vulnerable for them.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not the one givin’ orders in bed.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei ignored him, and instead lifted up one of Duo’s feet, setting it in his lap and firmly pressing his thumbs into the arch. The noise Duo made was part shock, part pleasure as Wufei worked his way over acupressure points until he felt the tension seep out. He moved up Duo’s calf, and then to his thigh, finding the knots in the deeper muscles and working them out patiently. He focused himself on finding every hurt and stress that Duo’s body was currently carrying and fixing it. Everything Duo wouldn’t let him do before. He let his fingers get to know the feel of Duo’s skin, the strength in his limbs, and the sounds he made as each bit of tension was worked away, savouring each and giving it the reverence he’d wanted to for so long.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not everything has to be a battle,” he said, as he moved away from the top of Duo’s thigh - earning a plaintive noise as he ignored the prominent erection inches away, and Duo’s hand twitching towards him, but he caught it and set it pointedly back on the pillow - and started again on Duo’s other leg. “You don’t have to fight for every bit of pleasure in your life, every bit of intimacy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You gotta fight for it at some point,” Duo breathed, his eyes half-closed and head tilted back on the pillow, fingers twitching against the mattress. “Might as well do it at the start, ‘fore you get too used to havin’ it around if it’s eventually gonna disappear.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not going to disappear,” Wufei told him. “Not any more.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once he had finished with Duo’s legs, Wufei moved his focus to Duo’s uninjured shoulder and the muscles in his neck, sliding his hands under his braid to work down from the base of his skull, over his shoulder and down his arm to his hand. Duo tried to twist his fingers to lock their grips together, but Wufei twisted out the way, instead moving on to massage down his chest and sides. The process was almost meditative as he took the time to learn Duo, and felt Duo relax beneath his ministrations until he was sprawled on the bed, breathing deeply, and looking blissed out and completely limp.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Except for one particular area.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei stood, and Duo’s eyes opened a sliver to watch him, then opened further to admire as he undid the tie on his loose trousers and let them fall to the floor. Duo drew in a deep breath and let it out in a low, appreciative sigh. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I use my hand now?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, you’re to stay there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Reaching for the lube this time instead of the massage oil, Wufei rested one knee on the bed as he started to slowly stretch himself. Usually during his infrequent encounters, this was fairly perfunctory, a task carried out by necessity when loneliness had driven him to seek physical comfort, usually when Duo had been deep away on assignment, with no contact for weeks. But now he could feel Duo’s eyes on him, hot and sharp, watching every movement. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I could help with that,” Duo said, voice rich and husky, “I’m pretty good with my fingers.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei’s breath caught in his throat at that, eyes flicking to said fingers that were curling and uncurling against the blanket, clearly wanting to touch. Finding his mouth suddenly dry, he wet his lips and was a little surprised at how steady his voice was when he spoke.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Next time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Next time,” Duo echoed, meeting Wufei’s eyes for a long second, before letting them drop to watching his hand again. “Next time, for sure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Fuck it, Wufei thought, he was ready enough. One smooth movement had him straddling Duo’s lap, breath mingling with Duo’s as he reached down to position the rock-hard cock against him, slicking it with lube. He felt Duo’s groan rumbling through his chest as he began to lower himself down cautiously, and acting on impulse he captured Duo’s mouth with his own, swallowing the sound as he settled himself onto the other man’s thighs.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He felt so full in a way that went beyond physical, and like he could feel his pulse in every part of his body. Heat was coiling from the pit of his stomach, and pulling back from the kiss, taking Duo somehow even deeper, he felt like all the air had been pushed from his lungs.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Duo’s eyes half-opened and his rough hand slid up Wufei’s thigh to rest on his hip - just rest, not grip, not taking control. He looked hungry and his cock twitched, but his body stayed relaxed against the pillows, pliant and obedient.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on, Chang,” he purred, “have your wicked way with me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei was happy to oblige, and braced his hands on the headboard, either side of Duo’s head. He raised himself up slowly, savouring every inch of contact. Duo kept his eyes locked with Wufei’s the entire time, although they slid shut when he lowered himself back down, head lolling back against the pillows as he let out a deep moan. Letting his own eyes fall closed, Wufei lost himself to the sensations thrumming through his body. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The rhythm he set was slow, and Duo followed his lead, rolling his hips upwards to match every movement. Yesterday had been a brutal, violent explosion of repressed desire and relief, but this was a gentle study of each other’s bodies and how they fit together. Wufei’s nerves sang with each stroke, each murmured endearment, each reflexive clench of Duo’s hand on his hip, each meeting of their lips.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was as if his body already knew how to work with Duo’s, like his years of watching Duo’s every move and motion had prepared him for how Duo would feel rocking against him, inside of him. Waves of pleasure washed through him, sweeping over him and stealing his breath. When he had the presence of mind to open his eyes, he saw Duo arching back against the pillows, face twisted in ecstasy, breath rough and flush across his chest, neck and face.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He looked incredible, and the spike of arousal made his whole body tighten, made everything feel that much more intense. A choked moan escaped his lips when he felt Duo’s fingers wrap around his cock, blinding white pleasure blurring his vision as his throbbing erection was caressed in teasing, twisting strokes. His movements were deft, confident, and utterly destructive. Wufei felt his body abandon rhythm for wild, desperate instinct, chasing the sensations inside and outside, Duo’s hips meeting his thrust for thrust, the noises coming from both of them utterly needy and filthy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His orgasm hit like a bloodrush, rushing through his body and leaving him breathless and lightheaded. He had just enough presence of mind to force his eyes open in time to see Duo’s face twist with pleasure, the muscles in his neck, chest and shoulder tensing, before he sank back against the bed, boneless, breathless, and covered in come.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They stayed as they were for a long moment, silent save for the rasping of their breathing. Eventually, Duo’s eyes opened lazily, and the smile he gave Wufei was slightly stunned, sated, and cautiously happy. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Still think we were goin’ too fast?” Duo murmured.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wufei just about resisted the impulse to smother him to death with a pillow, and settled for another, deep kiss.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Heero? You free this afternoon? I’ve got something I need to do, and I could use some back-up…”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The coffee shop was bustling, but not too busy, light but not too bright, and close enough to the hotel for it to be easy to find, but not so near that it felt like Duo was heading into enemy territory. He’d picked it with great care, although he was still grateful for Heero’s presence at his  shoulder. He wasn’t going to pretend that asking Heero to come wasn’t at least a little bit of an easy win for making things up to his friend, or that since he was already doing one difficult thing, he figured he might as well kill two birds with one stone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Plus, if Wufei had come with him, he’d want to be there every step of the way, through the whole conversation, and this was something he needed to do on his own. Heero was happy to sit at a table by himself in the corner, keeping an eye on things over the top of his book, and not interfering. He was acting as a security blanket for the afternoon, so Duo’s fight-or-flight instincts didn’t get their wires crossed with the sick, anxious feeling that was churning in his stomach, and forget where he was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Parents McGann sat at a table near the window. James was the picture of stillness, but Mary was fidgety, sipping at her tea, stirring in more sugar, peering at the people on the street, checking her hair in the reflection. She’d seemed so twittery and flustered when he called that morning, keen to speak to him, but at a bit of an excitable loss about what to do. It had taken a while to get a word in to suggest they meet for coffee, still longer to actually suggest the place.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was the other reason he’d bought Heero instead of Wufei - Heero had no qualms about manners, and wouldn’t hang around if he thought Duo needed to get out of there, while Wufei might be a little more concerned about the social niceties. Only a little more, but given how long it had taken Duo to get her off the phone without being rude, that could be precious time wasted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He took a moment to buy himself a large, black coffee and navigated over to them, settling in across the table and smiling his biggest, most company-friendly smile, while they smiled nervously back at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess we have some catching up to do,” he said. “Where do you wanna start?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you to everyone who is still here and being supportive, we're nearly done now!</p>
<p>Thank you again to kangofu_cb for the beta - this chapter contains a line that she says is the greatest thing I've ever written. You get a point if you can work out what line in particular it is.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em> Six months later </em>
</p><p> </p><p>The October evening was drawing in outside, but the kitchen-diner was bright and warm, full of bustling bodies and chatter. Joe stood on a chair he had dragged over from the dining table, and was standing on one side of the kitchen island, watching with wide eyes as Duo and Trowa worked side-by-side, dicing and slicing vegetables and salad like it was a competition. Which, all things considered, it probably was.</p><p>“Lean back, Joe,” Caitlin called, as she leaned into the fridge, “little boys with big noses can find them getting chopped off if they’re not careful.”</p><p>“Just like this,” Duo said, flicking the knife over in his hand and swiftly cutting the tip off a carrot. Joe grinned, but straightened up from where he had started to lean over the side, putting a little more distance between his face and the silverware.</p><p>“Who brought this?” Cait asked, standing up holding a bottle of sparkling rose.</p><p>“Duo did,” Trowa said.</p><p>“Oliver told me you got giggly on that stuff,” Duo said, dumping the carrot into a pan and grabbing a courgette that he started stripping into thin noodles. “I wanted to see how truly terrifyin’ that was.”</p><p>Cait walked around the counter so she stood beside Joe, in front of Duo, making eye contact as she stripped off the metal frame and foil, then swiftly and smoothly twisted the cork out with a loud ‘pop’, not spilling a drop or flinching even a smidge.</p><p>“One day,” Duo said to Joe, with a small grin, “your mommy’s gonna murder me and sink my body to the bottom of the canal, and no-one will ever suspect her or find me.”</p><p>Glancing sideways at her son, Cait winked at him and gave him a sly grin, before tossing the cork to him and walking off with the bottle, leaving Joe giggling behind.</p><p>“Who wants pink bubbles?” she called.</p><p>“Oh, me!” Relena turned from where she was inspecting a pair of photo frames on the mantle and held out her glass. “These pictures are cute!”</p><p>Caitlin topped her up and glanced at the two photos, with two young boys around seven or eight years old. The one on the right was a beaming boy with short hair, dressed in a miniature suit with a bright red tie; on the left, a boy with his hair in a braid, in a miniature cassock, smiling warily at the camera while the priest looked indulgently down at him and a nun petted the top of his head.</p><p>“That’s Oliver’s first communion,” Mary said, coming over to join them, letting her daughter-in-law top her up as she pointed at the right hand photo. “Father Paul. Ten minutes later he was halfway down the field covered in mud and grass stains playing football in his best suit.”</p><p>“We found the one of Duo in the L2 historical archives,” Oliver added from across the room, where he was casually dangling Niamh upside-down by her ankles while she attempted to flip herself back upright, giggling wildly. “They had a digital collection of records, documents and photographs organised by rough year, so we trawled through the time we knew he was up there and found a few gems. You nearly done with the veg, Duo?”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah,” Duo called back, tossing the last of the carrots into a pan and setting the knife aside. He rinsed his hands under the tap. “Have we got time before dinner?”</p><p>Trowa twisted to look at the timer on the oven behind him.</p><p>“About half an hour?” </p><p>Oliver deposited Niamh into his father’s lap and Duo followed him out of the kitchen-diner, across the hallway to the home office, grabbing his backpack on the way while Oliver pulled out the box file full of papers and notes. He took the folders out and spread them on the desk, while Duo fished a plastic file out of his bag and brought it over to the table.</p><p>“So, using the adoption paperwork and birth certificate, I was able to narrow down when we might actually have been born,” Duo said, passing the printouts back to his brother. He’d been warned the birth certificate was sketchy, apparently the adoption agency had guesstimated how old Oliver was when processing the adoption. The woman at the agency that Oliver had contacted to ask for details had been a bit confused and shocked when she’d been trying to dig back through the records to AC 180 - the only part of the date they were confident was accurate on the certificate (“Huh,” Duo said, “that means I am 31 after all. Lucky guess.”) - and had found the mess that predated her own birth.</p><p>They had no records of a birth mother, and it was only that the McGanns remembered the hospital they collected him from, St Joseph's, that they were able to narrow down any further records of the adoption taking place.</p><p>“Our records from under the Alliance weren’t great,” the woman had apologised. “We had very limited resources, and we lost a lot of information and files during the unrest.” The only thing she was able to confirm was that Oliver hadn’t been born in the hospital he was collected from. “That symbol there, next to the hospital name?” the woman had explained, “that means you were a transfer from another institution, but I can’t find the details as to where you would have come from.”</p><p>“Why would I have been transferred?”</p><p>“Sometimes it’s a case of adoptive parents wanting their baby checked out by doctors they’re familiar with. With L2 at this time? It happened a lot due to blackouts, or rebel activity, or even having to close down parts of the colony at short notice due to it becoming dangerous - there were some real issues with safety then. Quarantines too, occasionally. If you heard a quarantine warning and you could get the baby out in time, you probably saved their life.”</p><p>Flipping open the file, Duo moved a map out onto the table, with a number of red Xs drawn on it, and one green dot to show where Oliver was taken from. He fanned out a collection of news reports.</p><p>“I went through the list of hospitals that were operatin’ on the colony in 180, and then cross-referenced that with any news reports of blackouts, quarantines, fights, whatever in the two weeks before the date on your admission paperwork from St Joseph's. An’ I found this.”</p><p>The news reports detailed a group of rebels who had got their hands on rocket launchers, guns, and a decommissioned Alliance Leo, and had started trying to reclaim L2, one neighbourhood at a time. The Alliance had come to meet them, and the battle for control had wiped out buildings, killing dozens of people. </p><p>“They started about a block from this hospital,” Duo said, tapping at an X about five miles from the green dot as Oliver picked up one of the news reports and then watched as Duo’s finger tracked across the map. “There was a maternity ward there. They ordered them to evacuate as many people as they could, and everyone just scrambled. They went every direction, no paperwork linkin’ them together.”</p><p>“Do you think the hospital might have any records?” Oliver asked. Duo just silently pulled out the bottom news article, with a photo of the half-destroyed, burned out hospital at the top. “Ah.”</p><p>“They had to pull the remains down, ‘cause the rubble was unsafe,” Duo explained. “They uploaded all their records to the central colony healthcare server at midnight each day, and the local servers got destroyed in the skirmish, so none for that day.”</p><p>“Does that mean it’s a bust?”</p><p>“There’s no records of any other twins born in that maternity ward in the two weeks before the attack, or of anyone being admitted in labour with twins,” he said. “And the attack was two days before your admission paperwork at St Joseph's. None of the other hospitals had any records of having to transfer patients en masse… Odds are good that you were taken straight there, but they were processing so many people they didn't file the paperwork until later.” He shrugged a shoulder. "And who knows where I went, guess I got lost in the shuffle, and keeping track of twins when all babies look the same anyway..."</p><p>“So we have our official birthday.” Oliver managed a rueful smile, a little disappointed there wasn’t more. “That means you have to stop sayin’ your birthday’s in October.”</p><p>“Make me,” Duo said, collecting the bits of paper together again. “I ain’t sharin’ with you after havin’ my own day for the last 30 years.”</p><p>“You’re definitely the baby,” Oliver told him. “Can’t share anything.”</p><p>“I’m the oldest,” Duo retorted. “Tryin’ to live my own life, then you come along and want me to change everythin’.”</p><p>“So, that’s it then?” Oliver looked down at the collection of papers they’d dragged together over the last few months, little footsteps to trying to find out how they’d been separated, what had happened at the start of their lives. </p><p>“That’s it,” Duo agreed. It wasn’t much, but in some ways it was the best outcome. No idea who their parents had been, whether they’d been wanted or not, whether they were alive or not. Only that they’d been split up while their lives had been saved, so close to being snuffed out before they’d even begun.</p><p>The loose ends of their beginnings had been tied up as well as they could be. Now it was time to start looking at the future instead of the past.</p><p>Wufei would be so proud. So would his therapist.</p><p>They carefully packed up the papers and slid them neatly away under the desk again, Oliver saying he’d explain what happened to his parents in the morning, hopefully alleviating any guilt they were still carrying about ‘abandoning’ Duo. He’d done his best to try and squash that instinct, it made him feel very uncomfortable to feel like he had that sort of weight on someone, and it was very clear they had no idea he’d even existed, but he still caught them looking at him sometimes. </p><p>And apparently this little birthday celebration had been their idea, Oliver had let that slip pretty early on. He’d rather not have bothered, but family annoyingly seemed to come with a sense of obligation that he wasn’t entirely used to. The agreement was that as it was Duo’s birthday and not Oliver’s, none of Oliver’s friends would be coming (although Duo had the impression that things with Tom had been increasingly frosty over the last few months, which he couldn’t help but feel pleased about), only Duo’s. Hosting at Oliver’s had been the compromise, to address the potential power imbalance had it been at Quatre and Relena’s. It seemed to work - there had been a brief few minutes of surprise and awkwardness when Mary and James had met the former Queen of the World and her trillionaire husband, despite being forewarned. Oliver had insisted about forewarning, Duo, no longer feeling quite as petty as he had when introducing Oliver, agreed. Awkwardness disappeared when wine had been distributed and teams set up for a game of Trivial Pursuit with Niamh and Joe calling their partners early on. Niamh had grabbed Sally, while Joe had cautiously curled his fingers into the hem of Heero’s shirt and looked shyly up at his apparent confusion. </p><p>Hilde had finally made it down too, and hadn’t been shy about making the two of them stand next to each other to compare vital statistics. </p><p>“I dunno,” she said, “I think Oliver’s a bit better looking…”</p><p>“I like her,” Oliver said.</p><p>“You can keep her then,” Duo muttered sourly, relieving Hilde of her beer, “and I’ll take that back. If you can’t be nice to me, you ain’t drinkin’ my booze.”</p><p>“Guess we need to find a new hobby,” Oliver said, as they made their way back to the dining room, where Quatre was helping put the final touches to the place settings crammed around the table, Mary attempting to show him how to fold napkins into a flower. Trowa, Caitlin, Heero, Relena, Sally and Hilde were all crowded into the kitchen, decanting things into dishes, mixing sauces and carving meat. James was topping up everyone’s glasses generously, and Niamh and Joe were carefully ferrying full dishes from the kitchen to the table.</p><p>Wufei stood slightly out of the way, sporting a large glass of wine and a bemused expression. Oliver peeled away to go assist his wife while Duo made his way across to his partner, smiling fondly.</p><p>“I wasn’t quick enough,” Wufei explained as he drew nearer, “by the time I realised what was happening all the jobs had been dished out and I was told I was getting in the way. I was sent over here to stay out of trouble.”</p><p>“That’s usually what I’m told to do,” Duo said, smoothly relieving him of his wine and taking a mouthful before passing it back. “Wanna go outside and get some air?”</p><p>“We can’t go far,” Wufei warned, as they slid out the side door, “I believe dinner is an imminent prospect.”</p><p>“We’ll just be out the door, we’ll hear them.”</p><p>The night was dark and there was a chill in the air, the smell of approaching winter cutting under the crisp autumnal breeze. But it was dry, and after the heat and noise of the kitchen it felt like a shock to the senses, refreshing and rejuvenating. Duo could feel the goosebumps rising on his arms through the thin material of his shirt, but he didn’t mind it. Turning to face Wufei, he let out a sigh and smiled.</p><p>“All done,” he said. </p><p>Wufei stepped closer, and as Duo’s eyes adjusted to the dimmer light, despite the warm glow through the window in the door, he could see the gentle concern in his eyes, and that faint wrinkle between his eyebrows.</p><p>“How do you feel?”</p><p>“I dunno.” He caught Wufei’s free hand and laced their fingers together, looking down at the way their hands meshed so perfectly, so naturally. “Kinda relieved, I think? I never wanted or needed a family, I built my own past and life. It was bad enough when Oliver showed up, I kinda didn’t wanna think about what other backstory I’d have if I’d discovered anything else.”</p><p>Would he always wonder about what happened that day, how Oliver found his way to one hospital and a loving family, and how he ended up on the streets? Maybe. Had their mother meant to keep them both but died? Were they always meant to be given up, but got separated? Did they both go to the same hospital, but with no record they were a paired set? Had Duo been adopted too, but something had happened before his memories to put him on his own? He supposed those questions probably would still linger, for a while at least. Enough to make him doubt his own worth, and the history he made for himself? Enough to make him go digging even further? No. Some things seemed like too much work for too little potential positive outcome.</p><p>Wufei nodded thoughtfully, brushing his thumb across the back of Duo’s knuckles, a development of his nervous palm-rubbing tic, he did it when he wanted to ground himself, Duo had realised. Wufei probably still didn’t realise he did it, but Duo loved it.</p><p>“And Oliver?”</p><p>“I think he was lookin’ for the sake of his parents more than himself,” Duo mused, rubbing the end of his nose where it was starting to feel the chill. “Cait said he’d never cared that he was adopted, or about how he ended up there. Far as he was concerned he always was and would be a McGann. So I guess he’s probably relieved too.”</p><p>“Did he take it okay when you turned down his offer to join Clan McGann?”</p><p>“I think it helped that I didn’t flip out like he expected me to,” Duo mused ruefully. “I think he still thinks I’m a little volatile after… everythin’”</p><p>His suspension from duty had lasted a month. He’d been given a written warning, and referred to a Preventers-approved therapist, who he had to see weekly for the first three months. Then there’d been a review about his return to active duty.</p><p><em> Not </em> undercover duty.</p><p>The therapy had been… helpful. He’d been working through his bitterness at Oliver’s ‘better’ life, about the fact that he’d immediately perceived his own life as lesser by comparison to Oliver’s, but also how territorial he’d become over the things he’d manage to carve for himself - things which Oliver had no desire to take away from him. It had been painfully revealing to dissect his instincts and backstory, and to do it truly honestly instead of through half-truths and convenient omissions as he’d done for his other therapists. He felt like he’d been turned inside out and scrubbed with sandpaper after some sessions, and more mentally exhausted than he’d been since he was a child. Since before he’d grown his coping mechanisms and learned to start compartmentalising and compressing everything down as far as it could go. Now it was an arduous case of mining and deconstruction to make sure that instead of hiding it all he dealt with it and worked through it healthily.</p><p>It was hard fucking work.</p><p>And through it all, Wufei had been there. </p><p>That was surreal. He’d spent so long thinking that it was out of bounds that he didn’t trust that it was happening sometimes. Working through all the stuff had made him lash out a few times, like driving Wufei off would prove he was right to be suspicious. But Wufei hadn’t gone. He’d been patient. Oh, he’d called Duo on his shit alright, as he always had, but he hadn’t gone anywhere.</p><p>Now he was here, by Duo’s side, and smiling at him.</p><p>“Nah,” Duo said, pulling Wufei into him, feeling his warmth through their shirts, the firmness of his chest. “I’m not a McGann. I’m a Maxwell. And everythin’ I am, I made myself.”</p><p>“And no-one can take that away from you,” Wufei agreed, tilting his head back and letting their noses brush together.</p><p>“Just let ‘em try.”</p><p>Their lips had barely brushed when the door opened behind them and a small voice screamed out,</p><p>“UNCLE DUO, UNCLE WUFEI, DINNER’S READY!”</p><p>Wufei huffed out a gentle laugh against Duo’s mouth, and Duo raised his eyes without lifting his head, to see Joe hanging off the door handle and grinning at them, which perhaps should have been expected, small boys famously having dubious control of their own volume.</p><p>“Are you kissing?” Joe asked cheekily.</p><p>“No,” Duo said, “I’m just checking that Uncle Wufei’s remembered to bring his teeth for dinner.”</p><p>“And I’m checking to make sure Uncle Duo has trimmed his nose hairs,” Wufei said dryly, smirking when Duo looked back down at him. “I’m happy to report he’s all tidy.”</p><p>“Ewwww,” said Joe.</p><p>“Ewwww,” agreed Duo.</p><p>“Joe, did you call your Uncles?” came Caitlin’s voice from the kitchen.</p><p>“Coming!” all three of them called back, and, fingers still linked, Duo and Wufei made their way back into the bright warmth of the house, and allowed themselves to be ushered to the seats left for them at the table.</p><p>They had as many people as possible squashed around the extended table, elbows and knees knocking, people kicking table legs and playing pass-the-plate. It was noisy, it was messy, and it was chaotic.</p><p>“I saw on the news that they raided X8977,” James said, getting a kick from Mary.</p><p>“No work at the dinner table,” she chided.</p><p>“Yeah,” Trowa said, ignoring Mary. “The information we got meant we were able to make a pretty precise strike, in and out with no casualties.”</p><p>It turned out that Meredith and Karl had rather more information between them than had been initially thought, filling in some generous gaps in the intel regarding their arms in return for plea bargains against the charges brought from Duo’s time undercover with them, apparently happy to sell the rest of their team down the river when the realised that the remaining gang had given plenty up about both of them after their arrests the year before.</p><p>Of course, it was only the charges from Duo’s time undercover that they were granted leniency on - they still faced charges of attempted kidnap, assault with a deadly weapon, attempted murder, assault on a Preventer’s agent, breaking into the courthouse with a weapon and intent to harm, and Karl had a nice new arms dealing charge for all the new guns that had been seized from the bungalow. The one concession was that they not be put in prisons with anyone they had previously had dealings with, and that their identities would be changed on their release. But the latter was a long way in the future. Either way, the information they provided had given Une the push she needed to get permission for a full intervention, and the ability to plan to do it as cleanly and quickly as possible.</p><p>Heero had been involved with planning the operation, Trowa had taken point with him on the execution. Duo had been very firmly told that he was not to go anywhere near it under any circumstances or he would be suspended again, so help Une, if she didn’t murder him first. </p><p>And Duo didn’t like to push her murderous tendencies too far. He knew what her resume looked like. </p><p>No, he was staying right where he’d been reassigned, in cyber crimes, and was hacking his way into being a nuisance to everyone he came across on the DarkNet, even if they didn’t know about it quite yet. Occasionally he was going to help R&amp;D with their tinkering. Even more occasionally he was going out on front-line missions, but Une had only just started drip-feeding those to him as he’d toned down his status from “bit of a liability” to “potentially a liability depending on how he’s feeling that day”.</p><p>“It’s a good bit of PR for the Preventers, though,” Caitlin observed, passing Duo the dish of roast potatoes he’d been eyeing, thinking about a second helping.</p><p>“It’s just the sensitive work of making sure all the charges stick, and that the people on the colony don’t get resentful about it,” Heero said.</p><p>“We’re going to throw Relena at them,” Sally said cheerfully, smiling brightly at the blonde woman across the table from her. “Diplomacy-bombing.”</p><p>“What does that make Quatre?”</p><p>“Shrapnel,” Hilde suggested, and then ducked out the way with a laugh as she dodged a scrunched up napkin thrown at her head. In the kerfuffle that followed, where other napkins were balled up and thrown in revenge, until Relena called time because her wine was being put at risk, and that was frankly unacceptable.</p><p>Seeing that plates were cleared, Oliver started the chain call for empty plates, while Mary at the other end started gathering together the dishes to take and cover any leftovers, the pair of them clearing detritus as it was shunted to one end of the table or the other. </p><p>Some part of Duo still felt like an outsider looking into this, it felt like he was sitting outside of his body and watching someone else’s life as photos were taken and glasses refilled, and then the casual press of Wufei’s leg against his brought him back to himself, warm and solid. No words needed, no looks, just that small contact, and Duo returned to the present and sensations that had muffled a little came back to full volume and brightness.</p><p>He wondered if he would ever reach a point where this didn’t feel like a stranger’s life, where he would slip into it as easily and naturally as his old boots. </p><p>It seemed impossible.</p><p>The lights above them were turned off suddenly, and Niamh and Joe started giggling, as Mary and Oliver appeared with a large birthday cake, covered in lit candles, and everyone started singing loudly and tunelessly as it was slowly brought across the room and placed in front of Duo. He waited politely, as if for his cue, and then blew out the candles in one puff.</p><p>Oliver raised his glass.</p><p>“Now, as you all know, Duo’s birthday being at the end of October, that makes me the older brother by about six weeks,” he said, raising his voice over Duo’s annoyed shout, “and as the oldest, I just wanted to take a moment to say how much I appreciate having a baby brother who is so respectful of my life experience, accepting of my wisdom, and considerate enough to not be resentful that I took all the good looks and the brains in the family.”</p><p>“And none of the humility,” Duo heckled.</p><p>“It’s been a strange year,” Oliver continued, “but some good things have come out of it. So, happy birthday Duo, and I hope the next year brings more of the good things, and significantly fewer of the strange things.”</p><p>That was a sentiment Duo could get behind. He laced his fingers together with Wufei’s under the table, and joined the toast wholeheartedly. To less shit, and more good.</p><p>Every year to come.</p><p> </p><p>*</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>IT'S DONE. FINALLY. This mothereffer has taken three years to write and completely post. I started it in July 2017. And it's caused me no end of stress as it went in a completely different direction from my initial fluffy hijinks plan, and everything got longer but at the same time felt like it wasn't in-depth enough, like I wasn't doing the concept justice, and then I was like "Why am I even worrying, no-one's going to want to read it anyway". But then you apparently did want to read it? And were so very kind and supportive about a fic where I felt like my brain had just kicked me in the shins and run away while I was writing it. Thank you very, very much.</p><p>Eternal, undying thanks to kangofu_cb who not only betaed, but hand-held and listened to me just screaming at her.</p><p>It's over guys, we made it. </p><p>(also dang you can tell this was written pre-Covid, blowing out candles on a birthday cake - le gasp!)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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